


Rebirth of a S.T.A.R.

by ExodusDei



Category: Biohazard | Resident Evil (Gameverse), Resident Evil - All Media Types
Genre: Albert Wesker Lives, Drama, Humor, M/M, Office Sex, Piers Nivans Lives, Post-Resident Evil 5, Post-Resident Evil 6, Romance, Time Skips
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-18
Updated: 2016-12-23
Packaged: 2018-09-09 12:54:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 50,863
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8891566
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ExodusDei/pseuds/ExodusDei
Summary: The virus would not let go, would not allow him to die and neither would Jill. Weeks after Kijuju, Wesker is alive and more himself than he had been in years. Atoning for what he had done while working for the B.S.A.A., he decided that the best thing is to remain a shadow of the past and let everyone else move on, including the man he loved. But he should have known from the start that his plans were not going to work out. Meanwhile Chris is doing his best to move on, devoting himself to the B.S.A.A., unaware that someone is still watching over him from both afar, and close. Eventually, a new threat in the form of Neo-Umbrella rises and once more he has his hands full.





	1. Death & Rebirth

So this was what others called excruciating pain. Not an experience he cared for, but the mere fact that he felt anything seemed to be a good sign. Every limb burned as he moved, the most basic of all survival instincts going into overdrive. The intense heat was still present and to his displeasure, also loud. Who knew that volcanoes could make so much noise, all from some rocks and lava? But he continued to move, pushing himself to the brink of strength that he had remaining before the fragile edge gave away beneath his grip and the momentum pushed him forward, tipping him over.

The fall was an unpleasant one, every jutting rock hitting an open wound that he had plenty of, but he had no voice to cry out with or yell. By the time he stopped falling, the heat of the lava was gone, but the hard rocks provided little comfort. How he was still alive or why was baffling. He had felt his skin burn and flesh melt away from the touch, but the spots were already healed. But he couldn´t remember deciding to bathe in lava that day or any other. Large gaps in memories were giving him a migraine as he tried to force his mind to fill them in at any cost, but to no avail.

He was still alive though.

For now. The sky was a dull grey and the rocks beneath him pushed into every bit of sore skin. It took only a second for him to realize he was nude, but there was no surprise. Lava and fabric were not a friendly combination. His shades have been lost... somewhere. He didn´t recall anything. With another pained grunt he tried to sit up, eager to get away from the volcano as far as possible when his hand reached bits of shrapnel in the way.

Tricell. He recalled the name, and right beside it the ruined logo of Umbrella. So they were involved in this? He had too many questions and no answers. Again he tried to stand, only to collapse, his weakened body refusing to obey. At least his head managed to avoid the flow of lava, though it felt equally sore for some reason. Briefly he checked the top of his head. Messy, but still there. His hair was a vanity thing at this point. Staring up into the sky once more, he heard a distant, albeit familiar sound. Whether it was a good or a bad thing he couldn´t tell. He couldn´t move. Why was he even alive?

When the helicopter came into view his eyes went wide and it wasn´t the same one he recalled. No, on his memory he reached out to one, a black mass grasping it with nearly no effort as his body burned. Sad eyes stared back into his own as an rocket launcher locked onto him and he saw the man fire. The lips moved, whispering something and he recalled letting go of the helicopter and smiling, and then there was only nothing before he woke up from the pain.

_"Chris..."_

Where was he? Those eyes were his, he had no doubt about it, but they were sad and he whispered something. And Chris was the one to fire a rocket... at him. Confusion set in once again as he gazed down at his body. No damage at all. Not from the lava or the explosion, nothing, but the pain was still there, stemming from something unseen, as if a part of him was dying. Chris was there. Brief flashes of past encounters ran through his mind and more pain erupted in his whole body. 

Wesker´s frame shook as he tried to ignore it, but it was too much. The pain was just too great. With a last thought of his Pointman he went limp, mind peacefully blank as he laid at the edge of the volcano, unaware of the helicopter landing not far away.

\---

"Find a place to land!" The woman barked orders at the pilot as she stared out into the wreckage of the jet, or what remained even of that. She had to find him. There had to be a way!

"There is no-"

"I told you to find it!" Jill glared at the man enough to force him to fly around in circles until he began the slow descend. Seriously, flying into a volcano was one thing, but landing there? There was nothing safe about this! And she still insisted. The surface was far from suitable, but before he even hit the ground she jumped out and rushed somewhere.

"He´s still alive..." Jill stood over the man´s body, staring in slight shock. She expected to find a mutated monster or a destroyed one. Not this. The man who caused everyone so much pain and suffering. Who nearly destroyed the world to remake it in his own image.

For the longest time she stood there, gun pointed at his head and she knew that the right thing to do was to shoot and end it all. But she couldn´t. Not after seeing the message he had left. 

_-6 days ago-_

There were more things to deal with at the old lab than anyone had expected. Wesker was anything, if not a perfectionist. Files upon files, documentation of every experiment, every minute of the day planned out perfectly.

_7 minutes. 7 minutes is all I can spare to play with you._

Only that it wasn´t. There was no time off in his schedule to play with Chris and Sheva and yet he still found it for some reason. And while Jill took care of Sheva, he went after Chris. But the man refused to speak of what happened in that time for some reason. Or how he survived the one-on-one encounter with Wesker.

Jill picked yet another data disk and put it into her PDA, wondering whether it would deal with something important that they needed for later. Instead she found herself staring into Wesker´s blue eyes, his breathing ragged as he stared into the camera.

 _"Progressing quickly now... Jill is fine, will be fine even after the removal, but Christopher is here. I can´t... let him get hurt again. Not after all I did..."_ there was a brief pause as he strained to breathe. _"Uroboros is taking over... the viruses each fighting. Serum is not enough... my mind is..."_ another brief pause and his eyes clenched in pain. She had never seen him like this. Wesker was always composed. Perfect. _"Jill... sorry about your hair, I cannot fix that. Tell Chris... that I´m sorry. But he needs to finish this. Take every opening. Before it is too late. I always... considered him my best man. My Star."_ The video cut off there and she rewatched it a dozen times that very moment, then again every day since.

And now she found him. His body bore no damage from the volcano for some reason, but still shook with pain. Later in the documents she found more papers, more files dealing with his own infection, how he was fighting a losing fight. How the serum was keeping it at bay, but let it control him at the same.

"Which one are you now, Wesker?" Kneeling down as she holstered her gun, Jill stared at him for a moment, then reached out and opened his eyelids. Blue. Checking his pulse next she ignored the relied upon finding one and motioned with her arm in the air.

"Over here! I found him! Get him into the chopper!" This wasn´t over yet. Watching the two men under her command hesitate before her glare sent them working, they moved Wesker into the helicopter, but then just stood above him, clueless. Tying him up seemed futile and he had no wounds to take care of. No visible ones anyway.

"Back to the village. And if any of you speak a word of this, I will deal with you myself." 

_-Present time-_

When he awoke next, the first thing Wesker noticed was that he was lying on something softer than the volcanic rock from before. His eyes remained closed as he listened for the sounds. People. There was shouting outside. A dog barked not far followed by a child´s laughter. Maybe he was dead after all, but this was too good to be heaven and hell offered no comforts. Eyes finally opening he was still aware of the pain coursing through him, but it was bearable now, comparable to being shot. Nothing special.

There was a blanket thrown over him, colourful and obviously handmade as he sat on the cot. A building of sorts, far from modern, but it was cool and pleasant. Taking a moment for his eyes to adjust to the darkness inside he tried to connect the pieces of his mind and fill in the missing ones, but came out empty. All that he could think of was the last thing he saw before the darkness.

Chris. Where was he? Was he still alive? He had to be. He had always been a survivor. Stronger than anyone else. Wesker pushed himself up with sheer force of will and his body screamed at him in protest, but he didn´t listen. Instead he stood up and nearly fell right over, his legs still too weak. Now this wouldn´t do at all. Pushing himself even more until he could take small steps he looked around, trying to see if there was anything suitable for a man his size. He doubted that whoever was outside would appreciate the sight of a nude man. 

Instead of rags, he found folded up clothing sitting on a small table. A note on top read Put them on and don´t complain. -Jill. So she was alive as well? He felt relieved knowing this and set the note down before inspecting the clothing. Standard from what he could tell. Camouflage pants, heavy boots, and a white tank top. No underwear, he noted, but this was more than fine. 

Getting dressed never took this long and he almost missed the practicality of his old clothing. But the memories associated with them made him frown. Working the lacing of the boots took a while, fingers stiff before he finally managed. Standing up again he felt stronger, more stable, but the headache didn´t go away one bit. Regrettably, he found no shades in the small house, but he had to go outside and find Jill.

The first step into the light felt strange. He hadn´t been in the sun like this in... maybe ever. His memories were all a scrambled mess. His eyes needed more time to adjust to the bright sun as he looked around. He could see a few people around. Natives, a few turning to stare at him, the child he heard before, or another one, he couldn´t tell, crying out before running away to hide behind a man´s leg. Wesker only stared, then looked the other way to find guns pointed at him. He wasn´t surprised, having expected some kind of reaction, but instead of natives wielding these, he saw familiar uniforms.

_B.S.A.A._

And Jill was wearing one of them, staring him down, her blonde hair bright in the sun. He never did find a way to fix it back to the original brunette hue, but he managed to preserve her life and sanity in the brief moments of clarity he himself was gifted. For a while they stared at each other and he didn´t move. They could shoot right now. Maybe should to end it, but they listened for her command.

"Guns down. He´s no danger any longer."

"But ma´am-... that´s Albert Wesker!"

"I know who he is, soldier. And I meant what I said. Albert Wesker is under my protection and no longer a danger to anyone here." They doubted her words, he could see it in their movements, but the guns slowly lowered one by one as she began to walk to him. 

The punch came out of nowhere. And hit hard, causing him to stumble back and nearly fall. Her strength was still increased, maybe forever this way, but she could have broken his jaw with ease. This was more like reprimanding someone for fucking up. Which he technically did.

"I got your message, Wesker." Message? His confused stare probably said it all as she took out the PDA and showed him the recording she now had memorized. And he remembered. Briefly, after a too powerful serum injection, his mind felt clearer for a while and he made this to make sure someone would end it. Time limited, he tried to focus on what was important. So she found it... too bad it was too late at the time. He was still alive.

"You should kill me."

"I should." Jill stared at the man for a while, then put the PDA away and sighed. This was bad. Albert Wesker was a dangerous man, even without the power he nearly destroyed the world with, but right now, this man was just... he was too much like the Captain she once knew. His eyes were clue enough. Always the eyes. 

"How did you survive?"

"I... am not sure. I assume the virus inside me... forced me to. But I would need to run tests to be sure." Seeing her nod he frowned, aware of more people now staring at them, watching the conversation. "Chris... is he-"

"He´s fine. Back in America as we speak, wrapping up this whole thing. How do you feel?"

"Sore. In pain. My head is... killing me, so to speak. And... I don´t remember large parts of the past years. Bits and pieces, but not all of it. I just know what you should let them kill me. Or try to kill me."

"No." Now this surprised him and his expression showed as much. Jill shook her head and then smiled. "As you are right now, you are... ah, never mind. Come on. Let´s go someplace else to talk. We recovered a lot of shit from your labs and maybe that will help us figure out how are you back to normal. Or how you survived a rocket to the face." She began to lead him away, the soldiers parting as they walked, staring after them.

"Chris will be-"

"Christopher cannot find out that I am still alive." Jill whipped around to stare at him. "He suffered too much. More than anyone else. And it was because of me. If he thinks I am dead, then let him and let him move on. He deserves better than to live in a constant nightmare." Wesker felt his chest hurt as he said those words, but the pain was far from physical.

"But you two are-"

"We were. Not any longer." Her eyes narrowed as she continued to lead him to a large building off the centre of the village they were in. Inside the darkness was easier on his eyes and immediately he walked over to the tables pushed together in the middle of the room. 

"So you don´t care about him any longer?"

"On the contrary. More than ever, I care about him, which is why he deserves to be free, Jill. Isn´t that what they say? If you love them, you will set them free?" The pain in his voice made her look away. She wanted to argue and disagree, but in the end she said nothing, joining him at the table as he began to explain everything. Chris´ name never came up again for a while.

\---

Three weeks later, Wesker found himself on a plane back to America. He felt nervous and rightfully so. He told Jill over and over again to just leave him to live out his life alone in the jungle so he could hide from the world, but she refused, not giving an inch and instead forced him to agree to help the B.S.A.A. in any way he could. To atone for what he had done. It made sense, but it also meant that he was going back to a fraction of his old life he wanted to avoid.

"Since you kept holding onto your old apartment it´s still there. Though by now it was deemed abandoned and nobody bothered to pay attention to it for years, so you´re good on that account. The B.S.A.A. needs all the help they can get now. I got my old place back, but like you I won´t be working directly with others, so we are in the same boat. Well, except the whole people thinking you´re dead thing and I still think that-

"I´m not telling him. And you aren´t either. Jill, please, let it go." She did. For now. Wesker looked the same as she remembered now. Finding him something more suitable to wear was not easy, but black did look better on him. The hardest thing were the shades, his eyes sensitive to the light. Over the past few weeks the pain he felt slowly diminished, but the gaps in his memory were taking a long time to come back. And each time he remained alone for hours, recalling the things he had done for Umbrella. For himself. For Tricell. For the "good of humanity and the world". The third time he told Jill to kill him she punched him hard enough to break his nose.

But the break mended itself quickly, leaving no trace behind and that prompted him to study the virus that remained within his body even more. Not sleeping for days, ignoring the most basic needs he hadn´t felt in years until Jill forced him to do something as simple as drink or eat. He forgot those sensations. But the results came quickly.

The serum overdose from Chris was the trigger. The first reason why the virus began to fight and die off, but the injection agitated the virus until it took over his mind completely. From that point on, everything was black and only the muted recordings recovered provided some insight. 

"As things are now, the virus is still inside me. A part of me. But not in a way that would be considered lethal or infectious. The abilities I came to appreciate initially remained, but the rest... what we have seen on those," Wesker nodded towards the tapes. "Are all gone."

"So you´re back to being the old Wesker who nagged us about reports?"

"No. I´m just a relic of the past with no future." All he could do now was work with those he wanted to kill. Spend his life atoning for his sins before old age might kill him. If even that. Jill commented on how he seemed to avoid looking his age at one point.

"I swear if this is another poetry thing I will hit you _again_."

\---

He followed Jill out of the plane, looking around the dark airport. Small and removed from the general populace. It was a strange feeling to be back and he adjusted the shades on his nose. He no longer needed them, but felt obligated to wear them. Stepping on American soil for the first time in years while in full control of his mind, Wesker looked around and took a deep breath.

"Jill!"

The moment he heard the voice he was back inside, not even running. Within one second his body displaced itself from one point to another and he watched as Chris Redfield ran up to the woman, hugging her tightly, not letting go. Wesker recalled seeing him, but being able to just watch him now without the virus clouding his mind was different.

He changed so much. The young man he hired years ago was gone. The cheerful, happy expression of his Pointman changed to a hardened look of someone weary and tired, but he still had that glimmer in his eyes that betrayed his every emotion. He looked much stronger as well, the muscles straining against the turtleneck, showing off every inch of his body.

A brief flash from weeks ago caused him to stumble and lean against the heavy door, the noise causing the two outside to look towards the source, but seeing nothing in the darkness of the plane. 

_7 minutes. 7 minutes is all I can spare to play with you._

He remembered speaking those words to Chris not that long ago, chasing after him and then the dark room and strong muscles-

His chest hurt even more. And Wesker came to realize that this was another new type of pain he never experienced before. But unlike the agony of the volcano, this one wouldn´t fade over time. Heartbreak was an awful feeling. Looking at the happy reunion one more time he watched Chris smile and knew he did the right thing.

_"Be happy, My Star."_

When Jill told Chris she forgot something inside the plane and rushed inside to get it, Wesker was gone. Nobody saw him leave or even noticed when he could have vanished, but as she descended down the stairs, Jill held a pair of shades in her hand, joining Chris in the waiting car.

She knew where to find Wesker later. But for now, she would give him a few days.


	2. Friendship

Working from the shadows suited him well. He had done it for so long it was like second nature for him. When he arrived at his apartment that night, everything was as he had left it. Though dust coated most of the surface, Wesker was far from eager to clean anything just yet. First things first. Taking off the B.S.A.A. clothing he took a long shower, standing beneath the warm stream, avoiding extreme heat. Seeing Chris brought back so many emotions and memories he couldn´t handle and he didn´t want to deal with them. 

Spencer told the Wesker children so many times that emotion was useless, that love was just a fake, weak feeling that brought the strongest to their ruin and they all listened and obeyed. But he made the mistake shortly after leaving the mansion and starting his own life. That woman was unlike anything he read about, bold and not afraid of anything. When she vanished from his life he tried to pursue her, but Umbrella got in the way and he never did find her afterwards. And for a while he had control over his own emotions once more.

But then he was forced to hire someone new for his S.T.A.R.S. team and a new object of his fascination emerged. It has been so long he nearly forgot. Hair dripping wet, Wesker stood in the luxurious kitchen of his apartment, nursing a glass of hard liquor as he stared at the old photograph of his team. Back when he thought he could work against everyone on his own without any consequences. How wrong he had been. Raised to be better than all of them together and failing spectacularly at the same.

_-13 years ago-_

"You have to hire someone. Just pick at random. Look, this one for example." Already annoyed that he needed to expand his team, Wesker´s mood was not improved when Marini imposed his presence onto his office and now made a mess of the neat applications pile he had on his desk. "Skilled in tactics, recommendations, works well with animals and all that. Just go with this one." Tossing the file in front of Wesker the man gave him a smug grin.

"Marini, I would appreciate if you would leave the decisions concerning my team to me. And this one is no good. Too cocky and flirts with anyone in a skirt." Wesker tossed the file into the trash bin and sighed. This was more and more annoying by the minute. No one met his standards. Even finding the four he had on his team right now took so much effort.

"Now you´re just being difficult. Just go with anyone and if they don´t work out fire them." The glare Wesker sent him, even from behind those ever-present shades, made Marini shudder and he held his hands out in a defensive gesture before taking a step back. "Or I can just let you ponder this over till you go grey. Anyway, I´m off. See you tomorrow."

"Unfortunately." The door closed behind the man and Wesker once more enjoyed the silence of his office, picking up the pile and began to go over all of them one by one. And one by one they ended up in the trash, each one seemingly worse than the last. By the end, his hands were empty and the bin full. So when another knock came he was not in the best of moods.

"Captain? Did you make a decision yet or-"

"Burton, unless you found me the perfect person for my team, leave or I will make you leave." The growl from Wesker was enough to send a lesser man running. But Barry stepped inside and just set a file on his desk. 

"Well, there was one more application. Submitted late because of a mistake, but... have a look at it. I know the guy and he would be a good fit." When Wesker did not respond, he took it as clue to leave, silently shutting the door. Picking up the new file, Wesker was ready for more disappointment before he saw the photograph.

He knew the man. At the Air Force banquet, he had seen him, heard praise about him, but that was years ago. And now he was applying for S.T.A.R.S.? Going over the file was actually amusing. Getting into arguments with ranking officials, yet excelling at everything. Acting before thinking, trusting his gut... things that should speak against the man, but instead provided him with an edge.

" _Christopher Redfield_... you are an interesting one." Staring at the photo, the subtle grin on the young man´s face and the glint in his eyes, Wesker set the file down after a moment.

"Congratulations on making the Alpha Team, Christopher."

_-Present time-_

It might have been the best or the worst decision to hire that man. His infatuation with the Pointman grew after that, his interest showing and often he felt even protective and annoyed. When Chris didn´t think when going after a suspect, when his boisterous laugh echoed in the office or when he challenged Wesker to a marksmanship contest and his face when he lost. The shock and awe quickly became eagerness to become better.

Setting the photograph down he walked back to the master bedroom and retrieved a pair of underwear from his dresses, not bothering with anything else. It has been so long, but how long until Chris would forget him and move on with his life? Glass still in hand, Wesker slowly headed to his office and sat at his desk. Even here dust had gathered after no one tended to the place for so long. It was comforting to know no one had been here. 

Opening the bottommost drawer he took out a bundle of dried plant and gently twirled it between his long fingers. He expected the mistletoe to fall apart after a few years, but it still held strong, the red ribbon keeping the now fragile memento together. He was a sentimental fool after all. Keeping it on his desk he just sat there, aware that he could never speak to the man again. Never touch him or kiss him, never feel his skin against his own, never watch him wake in his arms in the morning. 

Though he was no longer in the shower, his face felt strangely wet.

\---

Working under Valentine was hell. The woman seemed to make it her personal mission to annoy him and ensure he wasn´t 'lonely'. The first time she showed up at his place a few weeks after they returned he let her in. The second, a few days later, he closed the door in her face before she picked the lock and let herself in. The third time he slammed and locked the door, keeping the key in, but she still ended up inside somehow, smug and smirking at him victoriously.

After that he gave up, letting her come in as she pleased and ignored her, working on his own things. Apartment cleaned once more, Wesker was able to fully immerse himself in working for the B.S.A.A. from the shadows. Four months after his "death" in Africa, the noise died down at last and people moved on, focusing their attention elsewhere. And he did everything he could do to help. Passing Jill information about groups that worked for Excella Gionne and watching as she took care of that was oddly satisfying.

The B.S.A.A. trusted Jill. And he was relieved to see that. Or more like hear about it, as he hadn´t set foot near the building since his return. Rarely even going outside, he even made sure that all groceries necessary were being delivered, making him a recluse of sort. He didn´t mind. His work didn´t require him leaving the place often and when he did, it was merely to take care of things Jill could not. No one ever saw him coming. Because officially, Albert Wesker was dead.

When she knocked on his door again he let her just use her own key, though where she got it was something he had yet to figure out. Typing away on a laptop he ignored the woman as she rummaged through his fridge, making displeased sounds over the lack of items. "You really should go shopping more often. Have you even eaten today?"

"No." 

"Okay, hold on. I get that you didn´t need to eat and do all those nice things the rest of us do, but you are back to your old self... for the most part. And we went over this. You need to eat, Wesker!"

"I disagree."

"And I don´t _care_. I´m ordering pizza."

"I don´t eat pizza." His voice held a note of annoyance as he was constantly interrupted, but Jill didn´t seem to care, already on the phone.

"You do now. Hi! Got any specials going on? I have a friend here with really snobby tastes and he never had pizza before... uh-huh... great, sounds perfect. Oh, and do you have that amazing garlic bread?... yea, toss that in." Wesker grunted again, glaring at her from behind the shades he put on after she invaded his safe haven, giving away his address like it was no big deal. "Oh no, I will come down and get it, don´t worry. Alright, thanks!" With that same satisfied smirk on her face she sat down into her usual chair.

"What are you working on?"

"There´s been something strange happening in Australia. A familiar face has been spotted near a university where Marini´s former teammate now teaches. Rebecca Chambers. Previously involved with a wrongly accused marine lieutenant Billy Coen." Typing away he didn´t look at her once. "You should send someone to investigate soon."

"Will do. So..."

"Yes?" When she said nothing he finally looked up and saw her staring. She wanted something and he already knew that he would refuse. Whenever she had this look, he knew what to expect. And it pained him each time. Perhaps she enjoyed torturing him like this. "Jill, we went over this. I have no intention of seeing him again or bringing back any memories."

"It doesn´t count as bringing back memories when he never stopped thinking about you." Wesker didn´t reply, staring at the screen of his laptop before proceeding with his work. How he wanted to see him at least once more, see how he was doing, reassure himself that Chris was feeling better, but it would tear at his heart to do that.

"It´s better this way."

"With you both miserable?"

"He´ll move on eventually."

"You should try looking me in the eye and try to sound convincing, Wesker." The icy tone of her voice made him look up and her stare matched it perfectly. He couldn´t bring himself to lie. What came so easily before was now a pain.

"How is he?"

"Working day and night, even has his new team telling him to rest. There´s this young guy, Piers Nivans, excellent results, top of his class, who´s following him around everywhere." She hoped to spark jealousy inside the blond man and indeed saw him tense, fingers clenching over the keyboard before he continued typing away.

"That´s great news. As long as they are reliable and skilled, he´ll be in good hands. And he needs someone to follow him around and maybe distract him."

"Aren´t you even a little worried they might be getting close?"

"No." A lie. A blatant lie. Of course he worried, but he knew where his place was. And if this... Piers, was as skilled as she claimed him to be, then he might be a good match for Chris. Of course, Wesker planned on investigating him later when she would leave and to find out every last detail of his existence.

"You´re impossible!"

"Thank you."

"You know, you could trust me more. After all we worked together for so long and in various situations. We´re practically family!" The word made him tense and he took the shades off for a moment, leaning back to pinch the bridge of his nose. 

"I don´t have any family."

"I´m still your friend." Now this was surprising to hear. Genuinely shocked he stared at the woman before shaking his head. She had bad taste in friends in this case. But without the will to argue, secretly pleased to hear that, Wesker stood up to get something to drink.

"When was the last time you slept?

"Four days ago... I used to be able to go on for weeks before requiring any form of rest. Being tired so often is annoying. How do you handle that?" The bottle of water was cold against his hand. With Jill around he might as well give up on his work for the moment and "enjoy" the company she imposed. She was right. He did feel lonely, but took it as part of his punishment regardless and didn´t think about deserving more. Being given a chance to atone was more than enough.

"Sleep and good food. And some fun. What do you do to have fun, anyway?"

"I read. And work."

"... you are the most boring man. Well, then, what did you use to do before that? Before everything went downhill?" The man was silent for a moment, as if trying to remember that time. His memories were only slowly coming back even now, nightmares filling in the gaps of the virus being in control. But these memories were his own.

"Chris would make me watch movies he liked, trying to find something we would both enjoy. I didn´t care for any, but he had fun. Sometimes I would read to him. He wasn´t big on poetry, but said that he likes my voice. And of course, we had our own moments to entertain us." He was smiling and Jill sat there, fascinated by the man before she saw his eyes glisten.

_Fuck._

Standing up she wanted to say something when her phone rang and she hastily picked up, thankful for the interruption. "Yes?... be right there, thanks!" Sliding her phone into her pocket she didn´t look at Wesker, aware that the man turned away from her anyway. "Pizza´s here, so I´m gonna run down and grab it. You find some napkins or... something."

There was no reply and when she closed the apartment door she felt like crying herself. She wanted to push the two together again. Wanted to see them as happy as they used to be, but it seemed impossible. Not just because Wesker was too stubborn and determined to be miserable and alone. But Chris was throwing himself into work and danger itself, disregarding basic rules with such ease and it terrified her to think of losing him.

Walking down the stairs, trying to prolong the time Wesker would have to compose himself, she stared at her phone, Chris´ name just there. All it would take was one call. One quick call and he would be here and... then what? If anything, things would get worse and Wesker would vanish for good. And she couldn´t betray him like that. Watching him fall apart and pick himself up again after every painful memory came wasn´t a pretty sight. Run the laborious tests on himself to ensure that he was no danger to anyone was even worse. She couldn´t even get him to come to the B.S.A.A. to use the laboratories there, instead he found a way around.

"Thanks..."

"You´re welcome. So your friend... you said he has noble tastes. I can see that." The shameless look the delivery boy gave her made Jill fix him with a freezing stare.

"Kid, you are way out of your league here. Run along before I get angry." She saw him open his mouth in protest, but something about her glare made him take a step back before he fled the building. "Fucking asshole..." At least the food smelled good.

When she returned to Wesker´s apartment, he was once more seated, no longer working though. Instead he turned on the television and watched the news channel for any new hints about bio-terrorism. Setting the boxes down she noticed the two glasses of whiskey he poured and didn´t question it one bit. She sat right beside him, silently watching the news anchor talk about Australia and a warning that had gone out near a large university town.

"I will take care of this. Send the report to the usual address when you´re done."

"Of course." Setting the pizza box between them, Jill smiled at the look of distaste on his face as he inspected it. To eat with his hands no less, how primitive. 

"Oh get over yourself. Pizza is just about the most delicious thing you can get."

"Or you could learn how to cook. It´s not that difficult and rather relaxing when done correctly." Watching her stuff her face he shook his head, still inspecting the slice he picked out. So much grease...

"Yea, but if I order, all I have to do is toss away the boxes and that´s it. Plus there´s always delicious leftovers for breakfast." 

"Sounds disgusting." Bit by bit, she brought Wesker back. His old perfectionist personality shining through the lone wolf facade. She would never just let him be alone. The man saved her life when the virus tried to make him kill her. Even went as far as to seek a cure for her hair which never seemed to grow a natural brown again, but she didn´t mind. Watching as he took the first bite and chewed she gauged his reaction carefully, staring at his face. The fact that he wore the shades less around her spoke volumes.

"It´s... passable." 

"You love it." Only a grunt in reply, but that was good enough. For now. 

Maybe a few months were not enough time to make Wesker see his own worth, but she was determined to show him otherwise. Things were constantly changing after all.

\---

One month later she send Chris and Piers to Australia to investigate the incident. The day after the men left she walked into Chris´ office to retrieve a file an found Wesker standing there, staring at the S.T.A.R.S. photo Chris had on his desk. His face showed no emotion whatsoever, but for the fraction of a second she thought she saw him smile. As he set the photo down and walked over to her, Jill was about to tease him about his resolve before a file was held out to her with a serpent-like symbol on top.

"I brought you something interesting. Have you heard of _Neo-Umbrella_?"


	3. Waching over you

"There have been a lot of new applicants after Australia. So many people want to join and fight against bio-terrorism it´s actually kinda impressive. But sorting through all of them is taking forever and every day a few more show up." Jill kept complaining about this for an hour now to the man seated in a chair in her office, sipping a cup of coffee.

"At least you know how I felt whenever I needed to hire someone for my team. The last person... was Christopher. Years ago." Recalling the memory made him smile now. After the man went to Australia, Wesker took to visiting Jill in her office, showing up out of nowhere and the first time she pointed her gun at him before telling him off loudly enough for people outside to hear. He, of course, found it amusing.

"I remember. Marini was all over your ass to hire just anyone and then fire them. Why did you go with Chris, anyway?" Not only was she eager to hear the story, she also considered this a wonderful excuse to avoid looking at the applications.

"He had excellent results."

"He was discharged from the Air Force for disobedience and arguing with his superiors. Kinda hard to imagine someone like you, who demands full obedience and control, hiring someone like that." Smiling behind her mug she watched as he glanced up from the newest report from Ada Wong regarding Neo-Umbrella. 

"He was interesting."

"So you met before then." She was smart. Too smart for her own good sometimes.

"We have. While I worked for the United States army, I attended an Air Force banquet. Although at the time I merely considered him interesting and not..."

"Not in a romantic way, huh?"

"No. I was with a date there." Watching her choke on her coffee was rather gross and he made a displeased face as she wiped her mouth, staring at him. He forgot that he never spoke about that time with her or anyone else.

"Wait, hold on just a fucking second, Wesker! You dated someone? Before Chris? You mean like really dated?"

"I believe that was what it was called, yes, and I would appreciate if you would not shout my name like that."

"Right, sorry. So, tell me about him!"

"Her." That silenced her for a moment and Jill wiped her desk with a tissue before tossing it on top of the few applications she already tossed in the trash.

"So you dated a girl? So, are you like, bisexual?"

"I don´t see how that is relevant to any of this. I merely considered her different and interesting. Just like with Chris later." Though they were rather different.

"How long?"

"A year and seven months."

"That´s... quite some time actually." Hearing about Wesker´s love life was far more interesting than dealing with work. Staring at the man she smiled, nodding at him to continue and after a small sigh, he did.

"She played the piano at a banquet before that. Burton was actually the one to introduce us. She was... from Edonia. Came here to fulfil her dream of playing for people. And she wasn´t afraid to just come up and talk to me. Stole my glasses because she wanted to see my eyes, apparently." Hearing the fondness in his voice was breathtaking. Jill only ever heard him speak with so much emotion about Chris. "Her eyes... were grey. Not the cold steel kind, but warm. And her hair was the brightest red I have ever seen. She was so full of life and energy and I wasn´t ready to encounter a creature like her in the slightest."

"You were _in love_."

"I was. But then... she vanished. Returned to Edonia and Umbrella made sure to keep me busy and away from her. By the time I could try to track her down again, it was impossible. Even with help. I never saw her again. But for a while, I guess I was happy." Closing the file he had been staring at he looked at Jill and ignored the glittering in her eyes.

"Show me those applications. I had to deal with so many of these I believe I have more practice. You go do... something."

"Do you love _Chris_?"

"Answering that would be redundant, Jill." But he still answered anyway. Because lying would be useless when it came to that man. Taking the pile of applications he began to go through them one by one, selecting a few which he set aside and after a while frowned.

"This man... it says here that he wants to fight for his sister. And that he wants to be the first in line for a vaccine. What is this about?" Turning the file towards Jill she looked at the name.

"Oh, Marshall. He had good results. But yea, his sister has been infected by a strange virus strain. Fatigue, weakened immune system, pain, seems like something mutated and spread to a few locations and she has been affected. There´s no cure as of yet."

"Are there any samples of this virus?"

"In the lab. Are you considering-"

"If there is anyone who can find a vaccine, then you and I both know it won´t be those fools playing with their beakers. I will need access to the labs after hours to work on it though. Can you arrange that?" Taking her pen, Wesker took one glance at her signature on another document and signed off on the application in her name, then a couple more he considered worthy. "There, your new B.S.A.A. members."

"You´re impossible!" Staring at the signature, Jill was actually impressed, but that didn´t change that it was forged. At the same time she trusted his judgment. "Yea, I can arrange it. From eleven in the evening until five in the morning should be enough. I will deal with the security and cameras."

"Thank you, Jill. You truly are as invaluable as you have been in S.T.A.R.S." There could not be a higher form of compliment from this man.

\---

"Hey, Jill, did you clean my mug and my office? Because I swear there was dust all over and I knew I forgot to even finish my coffee before I left."

"Nope. Had to be some kind of ghost watching over you or something!" _Damn you, Wesker..._

\---

Wesker spent the next few months burying himself in work. Be it for the B.S.A.A. intel or the vaccine, he was relentless in finding something, anything, that could help. After Jill hired the people he told her to she came to praise them, not forgetting to mention how thankful Cole Marshall was and how he kept talking about his sister who wanted to become a virologist. It only made Wesker work harder.

Too hard perhaps. Determined as he was, disregarding his own health and well-being, he didn´t consider that he was no longer as immortal as he might have thought. Draining his blood to have a reference he kept experimenting and when he ran out, he drained more. When Jill saw how grey his complexion became and how tired he was, she insisted on coming along to see him work. And it was easy to forget he was being watched and do as he always did.

She had quite the voice when she wanted to yell at someone. Only when she threatened to revoke his access to the labs he gave in and rested, being more careful as he worked. A few weeks before Christmas, he had it. He was convinced the vaccine worked. Testing it over and over again he could not help the smug grin on his face as he presented it to Jill. "Perfectly safe, removes any remains of the virus from the affected person´s body without damage to surrounding tissue and organs."

"You mean we can send it out?" Seeing him nod she did not hesitate to throw her arms around Wesker and give him a tight hug, ignoring how he tensed up. "That´s _amazing_! Do you have any idea how long our scientists have been working on something and you just come and in a few months BAM! You get shit done! We´re celebrating tonight!"

"With pizza?"

"You know it!" He smiled. The first vaccines went out that night, one of them addressed to Cole Marshall´s sister and when Jill insisted to the point of trying to threaten him, Wesker gave in, signing his initials in delicate cursive so that she was satisfied. "Nobody will know, anyway." She reassured him, but he had doubts. No matter. He accomplished something good for once and the feeling was... wonderful. If only he could share this with Chris.

\---

"I still cannot find a way to fix your hair. I´m sorry, Jill." 

"And I told you to stop worrying about it. Blondes have more fun so I save on the dye job."

"I wouldn´t know about the _more fun_ part..." Wesker grumbled softly, refilling their glasses. Pizza and expensive whiskey were an awful combination, but at the same time he found it comforting. With Jill back at his apartment, using her own key once more, he was no longer surprised to find her there after he took a shower.

"You know, there´s something I keep wondering about." Fixing him with a long, somewhat unfocused stare, Jill shuddered as she sipped the strong alcohol. How could something be so good, yet so disgusting at the same time? "Back in Africa, when I was still controlled by that... that weird red thing."

"The P30 device, yes."

"That thing, yea, you said you only had seven minutes to spare, but your schedule was always full. There were no seven minutes."

"Seven is considered a lucky number after all. I made the time." Wesker wasn´t sure he liked where this was going. Glancing at the cube of ice in his glass he tried to remember how many he had of this. "Why?"

"Well, I was taking care of Sheva, right? And damn, she was good. But we couldn´t see you or Chris anywhere, so where were you fighting?"

"There was a side room. A storage of sort, one could say... Although opening the door required me kicking him into it. The bruise was rather impressive, but seeing as his body improved even more since our last encounter, Chris was more than fine."

"..." She frowned for a moment, trying to figure out what was wrong with that statement before it hit her. "How did you see it? He was wearing a shirt, right? So how... Wesker? Seeing him look away and cough she continued to stare before her eyes widened. "Wesker? You… didn´t… you did! How the hell-"

"As you saw in the recording that you still have for some reason, I had brief moments of clarity. Moments when I was myself, with full control over my body and mind. Seven minutes was not enough, but it was enough. It had to be."

"So you two had sex."

"Yes. In hindsight, maybe we shouldn´t have and I should have focused more on making sure he finishes the job one way or another, but instead... he knocked my glasses away and saw my eyes. The next second he stopped trying to shoot me and the next thing I knew I had him pinned to a wall." The memory alone made him shift on the couch. He avoided thinking about this and anything relating to that event for so long and now...

"I loved him for so long, I don´t remember how it feels not to love someone. Spencer told all the Wesker children that love is useless and a weakness... maybe he was right. But I always felt the strongest when I was with Chris." She did not say a word as he rambled, probably affected by the alcohol. No longer as immune to such things, Wesker was opening up and she let him. "I wish for nothing more now than to see him happy and loved. If it is with that... that young sniper kid or someone else, so be it."

"He´ll never be happy with _anyone_ else, Wesker. And Piers looks up to him, a lot. Like a kitten or a puppy or something, but that´s it. Chris still talks about you..." Setting her glass down, deciding she had enough, Jill stretched her arms above her head. "And no matter what you say, I still keep hoping that the two of you will get together one day. That everything will... work out. The world becomes a better place and we´ll all look back on this time as just another nightmare that we overcame."

Wesker didn´t say a word, aware that such a dream was useless and would never come true. But he was already losing to the temptation that was Chris Redfield. Adamant as he had been about never stepping near the B.S.A.A. headquarters, now he willingly went to Jill´s office and walked around, sometimes entering Chris´ office just to enjoy the moment. He hadn´t seen him yet, not since the plane landed and he said his final goodbye, but how much longer could he resist...

Though he offered her his bed for the night, Jill took a taxi home and he was left alone with his thoughts. Perhaps the whiskey was to blame and he had every intention of doing exactly that if anyone found out, but shortly after she left he was outside, moving through the dark, familiar alleys before reaching the apartment building he knew Chris resided in.

Almost disappointed at how easy it was to get in, Wesker moved silently, entering the man´s bedroom and just watched the man sleep. He hadn´t changed. The room was a bit of a mess, clothes on the floor as he came from work, a sheathed knife on the nightstand and his face buried in the pillow. The covers were tangled around the muscular form and Wesker was finally allowed a moment to admire how much Chris changed.

Gone was the athletic young man he hired as his Pointman. The bright young eyes and messy hair were replaced by a hardened stare and unshaven face, his musculature improving. And he still looked magnificent. His chest hurt, but he was used to the pain. Watching the slow rise and fall of his back as the man slept, Wesker found himself moving closer without intending to, reaching out with one hand to brush the tips of his fingers over his cheek. Stubble. He did ignore shaving most of the days and it was a good look on him.

The fingers brushed over the scars that the man lacked before. On his shoulder a larger one, probably from a knife, but it didn´t look new. He had a few more fresher ones on his back and Wesker could imagine an explosion tossing the man back and Chris just shaking himself off before going back into the fray. He had always been like that. His hair was kept shorter now and Wesker almost missed the playful way it stood up, especially after a quick indulgence in the office.

Chris was a grown man who suffered more than anyone and still he fought for the good of the world. Glancing to the nightstand he thought the sheathed knife looked familiar, but his attention was drawn to the watch sitting there. So Chris hadn´t tossed it away? Perhaps out of practicality, or as a memory of better times, Wesker didn´t know. Until he picked it up and saw the worn out back, something having been brushed over and over again over the words he had engraved there. For My Star. Almost gone. Maybe by the time the words would fade, Chris would move on.

Wesker set the watch down before his hands could start shaking and once more stared at the sleeping man. Chris was utterly beautiful. Different from _her_ , but at the same time alike. He was all Wesker wanted from the world, but realized too late. Once more he reached out, fingertips nearly touching the sleeping man´s parted lips, but when the dark eyelashes fluttered he was gone, only a window open, the curtains barely moving in the night breeze.


	4. Broken Determination

"-all I´m saying is that the window was open when I am sure I closed it and I feel like someone´s been watching me. And this has been happening for months! That´s why I´ve been sleeping in the office and the couch is not nearly as comfortable as Wesker´s back at the S.T.A.R.S. office was." Chris was pacing in her office, hair dishevelled and dark circles beneath his eyes.

"Right, and you know exactly how comfortable his couch was. In fact, you would know best." She gave him a knowing smile, enjoying the sight of red creeping into his pale cheeks. He really did look like he needed a few good hours of sleep and pronto.

"Shut up... I swear my place is haunted. Do you think I should call an exorcist? Or a priest?"

"I think you need to calm the fuck down, Chris. Your place is not haunted. You´re just tired, that´s all." But she knew better. She knew exactly what has been happening the past months that made the man like this.

"What about all those times my office was suddenly cleaned for no reason? Even my mugs, Jill! My damn mugs that had stains I could not scrub clean are now pristine!"

"Then I think that´s a good ghost and you should set out some kind of thankyou note. Who knows, maybe he will appreciate it."

"He?"

"He, she; it doesn´t matter. Look, I got work to do, so you marsh your ass home and get some sleep and I swear if I find you sleeping on your desk again I will dump all my ammo drawer on your head!" Chris grimaced, muttering something about girls being bossy before slinking out of her office, yawning on the way to his.

Jill sighed, waiting for the door to close before looking towards the large closet where she kept her gear and backup gear. Wesker calmly stepped out, adjusting his shades that he now wore purely out of habit and sat down in front of her desk.

"Well?"

"Yes?"

"Mr. Ghost." She was a faint smile touch his lips and Wesker shrugged. Watching Chris sleep became a habit. At least once a week he would seek him out, watching him rest. Sometimes he would touch him, just a brief caress was enough. And he knew that he shouldn´t. More than anything he was aware of how wrong it was and how he was only causing them both pain, but he was weak. He was still in love with the man.

"I guess you´re going to tell me to stop."

"Not really. I think... that it´s good for both of you. Kinda." Shrugging she took the newest file he delivered out of a drawer and flipped through. Simmons was on the move, gathering more and more power now, but nothing that would warrant going against him.

"Connections to Raccoon City... it has been so long..." Focusing on what Wesker found she frowned more and more. There were hints, speculations, the evidence not enough, but if what this hinted at was true at all, then- "He gave the order to destroy the city. It wasn´t... you."

"I still carry all responsibility for what happened."

"Carry it all you want, what I see here could basically clear you of all the shit related to that. Or at least like... ninety percent of it." Closing the file he hid it back in her drawer and fixed Wesker with a long stare. "They are definitely up to something. Neo-Umbrella. And we have to stop it before it´s too late."

"I´m doing what I can. For now, Ada Wong is dealing with some business in Edonia."

"I still can´t believe she found out. That woman is dangerous."

"No more than you." Jill took the compliment for what it was and smiled. The more time passed, the more was Wesker back to his old self. The same perfectionist Captain they all followed and worked with, they all looked up to and the same man that Chris fell in love with.

"By the way, Marshall´s sister completed two semesters in one. Since her recovery she´s been advancing in the virology field and is called a prodigy. Not even legal to drink and already doing research with the best." When the news of the man´s sister recovering from a mystery vaccine delivered to their doorstep spread through the B.S.A.A., more followed, success stories and happiness and of course, concern as to who made it and how. Nobody knew and no one from the science department took credit for it. The mystery remained exactly that.

"She is certainly a clever young lady." Wesker was definitely pleased. "I am glad that the vaccine proved to be a success. I have been experimenting with another strain recently and it looks promising, but the vaccine is still lacking a certain... something. And I don´t know what. For it to be fully usable, more is required. More of something I don´t have yet." It was frustrating to consider this.

"Wesker, take a break. All you do is work or watch Chris and you do nothing for yourself. And ever since Neo-Umbrella showed up you were working nonstop to the point where I had to remind you to actually rest. You aren´t the way you used to be, Wesker. You need food and water and sleep like the rest of us. You´re human." Seeing his look she chuckled. "Mostly. But I mean what I said."

"Maybe a day or two off would not hurt... eventually. Right now I´m waiting for Wong´s report from Edonia. The civil unrest has been growing and the perfect chance to grab a subject or a dozen and use them." Jill´s frown made him shrug. "Umbrella did it."

"Just try to at least sleep since instead of doing that you´ve been watching Chris."

"Hey, Jill! I forgot! Were you talking to someone?" Chris stormed into the office without knocking and Jill tensed, but before she blinked Wesker was gone, the breeze from outside rustling the curtains. 

"What? No, just myself. Complaining as usual. What did you forget?" Chris sniffed the air, a strange look passing over his place as he walked to the chair where Wesker sat moments ago. Touching the armrest she worried that once he would sit down and feel that someone had been there he would know, but instead he turned to her.

"New perfume?"

"What?"

"Ah, never mind, I guess I was imagining it. I´m going home to get some rest. Piers told me off for trying to work..."

"He learned quickly. Alright, off you go, get some sleep. I don´t want to see you until tomorrow." Chris gave her a smile before leaving once more and she leaned back, letting out a deep sigh. Dealing with those two was really taxing. She could use a spa day.

_-6 months later-_

"-the B.O.W. have different weak spots. Look for anything fleshy and vulnerable, then open fire until the thing dies. They are not thinking creatures. They are weapons means for destruction. The latest reports from the Easter Slav Republic show that the president has been employing the B.O.W. obtained via black market to fight against the rebellion called the Edonian Liberation Army." The slide changed to show a video of men fighting, many bearing a spider insignia on their clothes.

"They hire mercenaries to help and some turned to other sourced for support. We have suspicions that an organization called Neo-Umbrella is running trials using the mercenaries, but there is no definitely evidence yet. As of now, the civil war still continues and the B.S.A.A. will be definitely unwelcome in the country. Chris?" Jill stepped aside and a weary-looking Chris Redfield took the stage, changing the slide yet again. 

"This is called the Lepotica... A fully formed B.O.W. with the ability to spread the virus through the gas it creates in its body. It is vital to take it out before the gas can spread. One B.O.W. like this can infect an entire university campus within a few hours if not contained. They emerge from a hard shell called the chrysalid, but those can too be destroyed. Open fire and don´t look back." The slide changed again, showing the remains of what used to be a beautiful square, now in ruins.

"Alpha team will be dispatched one week from now. Bravo and Delta will follow to other areas. Our objective is to find the source and destroy it, not to mess with the civil war. Understood?" Nods were all the replies she received before she looked to Chris to see if he wanted to add anything more. 

"Dismissed." The gathered soldiers slowly left the room and Jill leaned against a desk, watching the clip of the waging war. Edonia. Wesker´s first lover was from that country. And this information came from the man, so he had to know.

"I think I´ll work from home the rest of the day. See you tomorrow?" Chris gave a brief nod, already going over the maps, the files, everything they had. After some time he stopped questioning where she got all this information from, who her source was. Jill seemed to have a working spy network and they were doing excellent work and that was all that mattered.

Going to her office first to pick up some papers she startled as the door closed behind her and whipped around, gun in hand, but at the same time the tip of a crossbow pressed against her chest. "Alert as always, Jill Valentine."

"Ada. Now is really not the best time."

"On the contrary, now is the best time. I found something interesting about Edonia." Walking around her desk, Jill began to gather what she considered important before a new file was set in front of her.

"Look, I think we have plenty of things-"

"Not about _him_." Frowning, Jill grabbed the file, giving her a glare before opening it. A young man was glaring from the photos, barely two decades old. The scar on his face was rather prominent. Another mercenary. But the eyes that stared from the paper sent chills down her spine. They were exactly like...

"Jake Muller. Quite the resemblance, don´t you think? Who would have thought that Albert Wesker had a son." Jill was far from amused. Sitting down she began to read every little info there was about him. Mother, an unknown pianist. Took up mercenary work to earn money. His skills. It was all there. But there was another page, an excerpt from something greater and just reading through that made her stomach turn.

"Turns out, Edonia is a rather poor country and people turn to various ways to earn money. Especially when having someone else´s health in mind. As did young Jake Muller when he was-"

"Shut up. Just... go." Jill slammed the file shut and stood up.

"But Jill, that´s good news. He might just be the solution to the problem we have right now. The saviour of the world. Strange, considering how his father tried to destroy it, don´t you think?" Ada walked to the window, sitting there for a moment, her breath fogging in the cold air before she looked to Jill and smiled. "He needs to know."

"I´m aware. Get out."

\---

"Chris hasn´t been sleeping again. Since the Marhawa Academy, he´s been more focused than before. Same goes for that sniper following him around." Didn´t need to attend the meeting to know what has been said. Sitting on the couch he watched the news of another B.O.W. rampaging through Edonia spread, before the news of the civil unrests continued. Lately he had been reminded of her a lot.

"Wesker... we need to talk." The tone of her voice suggested nothing good and the man sat up, nodding briefly as she took a deep breath. There was no easy way around this.

_"You have a son."_

"...excuse me?" He couldn´t have heard that right.

"You have a son," she repeated softly, setting the file down, though she tore the last page out for... reasons.

"I assure you that is impossible. I have been rendered sterile a long time ago." There was no possibility of him fathering a child, let alone without him knowing.

"Obviously it is. Just, please, look at it. Humour me." And after a moment of hesitation he did, opening the file and was greeted by the icy stare that mirrored his own. The resemblance was uncanny. Sitting up he gripped the file tighter, removing his shades to make sure nothing was in his way. 

Several minutes passed as he read through the file several times, returning to stare at the photo over and over again. Jake Muller. Was this real? It should be so easy to forge this kind of thing. But the details were all there, cruel and unforgiving staring back at him from the paper. Mother: deceased. Father: unknown. His hands shook as he read the first two words over and over again before his eyes once more slid to the more detailed report.

_-after suffering a long term illness, Muller´s mother passed away four years ago while he was working to obtain the funds required for her treatment. Before becoming a mercenary, Muller found other ways to obtain the necessary funds, but it wasn´t enough and his skills proved to be more valuable in the military field-_

"She died. We had a son and I didn´t even know. And she´s... _gone_." Fund for medical treatment. He had more than enough. Gripping the file harder he felt the pages tear as he stood up. "What all was it good for if I couldn´t even... if she had stayed everything would be different!" He wasn´t blaming her. More than anything, he blamed himself for not noticing. "I have a son who fought and put his life on the line since... no kid should do that kind of thing." Once more he read though the pages, pacing now, running his fingers through his hair until it was a mess and Jill had never seen him like this before. All she could do was sit there.

"Jill, there´s a page missing."

"It´s not important."

"If it has to do with my son, it is of vital importance. And since you didn´t deny it, I want to see it. Now."

"Wesker-"

 _"Now!"_ For one brief second she thought the icy blue eyes glower red, but that could have been her imagination. With a shaky hand she reached into her back pocket and took out the folded page, handing it over.

"He was trying to help his mother..." But that sounded like a stupid thing to say. Watching Wesker´s eyes widen and then narrow as he read through the page she took a step back, just in case he might lash out.

Instead she watched the man crumble to the ground, wet marks on the page as he continued to stare at it. There was nothing she could say. Nothing to do. She couldn´t understand what he was going through right now. One second he found out he had a son, the next that the woman who gave birth to the child died because they had no money for her treatment and to drive the final nail into the coffin, he now knew what Jake did to earn the money before becoming a mercenary.

"If only the Tyrant had killed me, but even then he would already have been born. All these years..." The man´s voice sounded so broken and the only word that came to her mind now was _fragile_. And she wasn´t the person who should be here with him. But Chris didn´t even know Wesker was alive. What would he do if he were here? Kneeling beside Wesker, Jill wrapped her arms around her former Captain and just held him, rocking him gently, not saying a word about the wetness that soaked her shirt while his shoulders shook.

Long minutes passed, maybe even an hour and her legs felt numb, but she didn´t let go for even a second. By the time Wesker pulled away the man looked every bit as focused as he used to. But his expression frightened her. The face of a man with too much to lose and yet nothing left.

_"I´m going to Edonia."_


	5. Back in action

"It´s just too dangerous." Jill paced outside the bathroom where Wesker locked himself in, doing... something. When he said he was going to Edonia, she thought he was joking or at least that she had a chance of changing his mind.

"Not for a man such as myself and you know that." The sound of heavy water flow made her frown and she looked at the clothes on the bed. Black, not entirely unlike his old outfit, but more resembling the standard B.S.A.A. uniform. With a slight twist. Where he got that or how, she didn´t even want to know. But that wasn´t all he had ready.

Right beside it was his old revolver, in perfect condition and when he took it out she was startled. But Wesker wasn´t wasting any time. Locking himself in the bathroom he kept doing something in there while she paced and when she tried to pick the lock she heard an annoyed growl and put her tools swiftly away.

"Chris will be there and he can take care of things! You know how well Alpha team work!"

"This is my son we are talking about being in danger as well." It was strange to hear him talk like this about a kid he never met. Well, more like a young man, considering his age. But an adult by more standards than any other, after all he had gone through. No child should have to go that far. But he did it anyway.

When the door opened her snapped up from the S.T.A.R.S. photo Wesker had beside the bed and she let out a strangled noise that could be anything from a laugh to a gasp of horror. Hands clasped over her mouth she stared at Wesker. A black-haired Wesker with thick-rimmed glasses and his hair... loose. His eyes were no longer the icy blue either. Instead they were a soft brown, a colour that reminded her of Chris´ own. It wasn´t a bad look, but... "You look like a fucking hipster!"

"I don´t know what that means, so I shall take it as a compliment." Both ignored the fact that he was naked as he strolled over to his dresser and swiftly pulled on a pair of black briefs. Brand-name ones, of course. "I needed a disguise and going to the other spectrum seemed sensible." When he saw her staring as he got dressed, Wesker pointed at the usually pristine sink, now dirty from the black hair dye. "It washes out over time."

"Thank fuck for that, but seriously, you can´t go there! It´s too dangerous and if anyone sees you-"

"Then they see me. Jill, I just found out what I have a son who is in danger and who..." he couldn´t finish the sentence, instead slid his gun into the thigh holster. It felt so foreign to wear these clothes. Sitting on the bed he began to lace up the black combat boots he still had in his closet. "I need to make sure he´s alright. And that goes for Chris too. Edonia is a dangerous place, especially with Neo-Umbrella and The Family having their hands in it now." 

"The Family?"

"Wong will explain. She´ll come see you tomorrow before departing on a mission for me." Jill didn´t look pleased at all, the idea of that woman showing up making her bristle. 

"Fine! But you´re coming with me to the HQ right now and I am getting you proper equipment before you throw yourself head-first into danger. You can´t blow your cover. At least not yet." She was genuinely concerned and it showed in her expression, forcing Wesker to stop for a moment and stand up.

"I´m worried about you. The last time I saw you lose control like this was when Chris got hurt back in S.T.A.R.S. and you were livid. Ended up tracking down the man who knocked him out and got shot in the process. Remember how Irons yelled at you back then? So this time I will yell at you if you´re not careful." Setting her hand atop of her head he gave her a gentle pat before pulling away.

"I´ll be careful, I promise." But this was the man who once had delusions of godly power, and perhaps rightfully so. It would take a lot to bring him down. Or used to. Now he wasn´t entirely sure, but he wasn´t going to take any chances. Neither Chris, nor Jake were getting hurt.

"Let´s go get that equipment then so I can leave as quickly as possible. I already arranged for a flight."

"How?"

"Jill, I didn´t spend so long building connections and establishing favours for nothing." He gave her another smile before grabbing a black coat to conceal the gun, blinking in confusion for a moment we he attempted to put his shades back on. "Forgot about these. I guess I´ll just have to do without for the duration." He let Jill lock up and for once used the stairs to descend, the photo he tore from Jake´s file in his pocket. "Jill."

"Yea?" Walking to her car he slid into the back to remain as hidden as possible.

"What is a hipster?"

\---

Edonia was a truly war-torn country, no doubt about it. It used to be beautiful, at least from what he heard. Gardens and old trees, flowers blooming at every corner and even if most people didn´t have much, they were happy. But what he was seeing right now was death and destruction in the purest of forms. Bodies were piled into a mass grave my political militants, but so far he had seen no B.S.A.A. soldiers or the Edonia Liberation Army members. Watching out for the spider sigils he saw, Wesker continued to move through the shadows.

This was the place from the report. The square looked much better previously, the City Hall especially was a mess, but he checked the place over once before moving on. There had to be another place to look. Only a few people were around, though which faction they belonged to didn´t matter to him as none of them was Jake. Instead he moved to the meeting point where he would meet with Jill´s contact and a helicopter and recalled her words:

_"It´s risky, but the best option since no one will look inside and you´ll be able to hide if necessary or vanish. And if any large B.O.W. show up you will be able to help, right?"_ When she said it like that, it made sense. Now he regretted agreeing. He had his own ways of working.

It was a most strange feeling to be in full control of his own body. To feel the power in his fingertips, the speed that made his heart race with delight and the power that he wielded, but have a clear mind at the same time. His stamina remained rather impressive as well, as he noticed, crossing over large distances in mere moments. Even if he would be considered a monster now, he didn´t care.

He had to find his son.

"You´re Jill´s agent? You sure you´re not here to get in the way? Don´t look like much." Seeing the man he was supposed to meet left him with a negative impression already. "You sure you´re up to this with that nerdy getup? Can you even see through those?" The man reached out to touch the fake glasses Wesker had on, but instead found his arm pinned behind his back and his face pressed into the smooth lacquer of the helicopter.

"If you are done analyzing my attire, I would appreciate if you would do your job so I can do mine. Otherwise I will find someone else who will."

"Alright, sheesh, let go! Jesus Christ, where does she find you people?" Releasing the man, Wesker climbed into the helicopter and kept to the back while the man grunted under his breath and moved into the pilot´s seat. There was no warning given as the machine began to hover and then fly away, into the fray that Wesker heard before. He had to find him. Them.

The J´avo though, they were interesting. Seeing coherent monsters like that made him wonder who was the creator. The virus itself, aptly called the C-virus, already had samples in his lab and he started working on a possible cure, but something was missing still. Watching the mercenaries go up against the J´avo and lose was disheartening. Moving behind the machine gun he opened fire the moment the helicopter moved into position.

It took more bullets to kill one J´avo than an ordinary human. Watching them mutate after a lost limb was also interesting, the rather disgusting mutations of a whole torso making his nose wrinkle. But still no Jake. Motioning for the pilot to fly the helicopter higher he kept an eye on every man who appeared, but lost interest the second he found them to be someone else. 

_"Goddamn B.S.A.A.! What the hell are you shooting at?"_ Automatically he focused the gun on the voice, but instead stared at the face of his son as he calmly walked into the fray right beside a young woman. Blonde hair, familiar features.

"Sherry...?" Whispering he shot a J´avo that appeared on top of the building behind them, causing Jake to curse again. For a moment, the gun focused on his face and he stared at the young man.

His son.

He never imagined he would ever have any offspring and certainly didn´t imagine meeting them like this for the first time. Then again, nothing in his life seemed to have worked out as planned before. Which was often a good thing.

The helicopter continued to move with the two, taking out those who followed or got in the way, but he couldn´t get everyone. Instead he watched Jake take out man after man without as much as a flinch, eyes staring forward. He didn´t even use a gun. Just went hand to hand with the J´avo in the way as if they were made of twigs. The moment he realized this concern filled him as he began to wonder what other aside from appearance Jake might have inherited from him.

Sherry was not bad either. She made a good agent, but still obviously new, struggling in certain areas, but she was skilled and with enough experience would get better. Seeing Jake actually get in the way of danger and her was... nice. So he wasn´t just an unfeeling killing machine. When they vanished from sight, Wesker grunted, disapproving already, but he had no other choice. "Go meet the rest of the B.S.A.A., since I have a job to finish."

"Wha-hey! Are you insane!?" Watching Wesker jump out of the helicopter, the man nearly whirled it around, but when he looked below he was gone. Was he... just a mirage? Did he dream this all?

\---

He followed them, dealing with the J´avo who tried to take the out from behind and every so often had to stop. Jake´s instincts were sharp, maybe too much so. So Wesker took his time. When he heard him speak about what happened a few years ago he tensed. The scar on his face was from that time? Three years ago... he wasn´t even a legal adult and already-

The tears that forced their way into his eyes burned with the contact lenses and he angrily blinked them away. Where was his heart of stone that would not be moved? If Jake had not taken care of those men, Wesker would have another mission to deal with. And maybe... he just would. The last page from the report on Jake Muller appeared in his mind and he held back a growl, catching up to the two just as a monstrous creature began to chase after them.

Now this was a new B.O.W. and Wesker didn´t like the way it followed Jake around. Trained to capture him or kill, he wasn´t sure which, but with the J´avo around he had to hide. As much as he wanted to take them out, he couldn´t. But it seemed that his help wasn´t required. Jake was doing a great job. After a second he found a path outside, entering the square he passed through before, only that now he could see that the B.S.A.A. arrived.

Of course, his gaze was drawn to Chris immediately. And seeing him geared up, commanding his men and lifting their spirits, Wesker felt proud. Watching him from afar was the best he could get and he took it all, devouring it like a starving man. He noticed the sniper who stuck close to him as well. Piers Nivans. He knew of him and his family history. Which was impressive. No wonder Chris selected him for his team.

It seemed to take too long before Jake and Sherry emerged at last and Wesker moved inside another collapsed building, getting rid of two J´avo who were in his way and watched the encounter. "Chris, that man is a wanted insurgent." Was he now? Wesker was impressed, though not pleased. 

"Yes, he´s a mercenary. But right now he´s under the protection of the U.S. government. He´s no threat to the B.S.A.A." Sherry´s defence made sense, but the sniper didn´t look pleased at all.

"Unless someone pays me to be." Wesker´s lips curled into a smirk. That kind of snide remark was definitely something to rile others up and the effect was immediate.

"What did you just say?" The sniper stepped forward and Chris followed his gaze. And then Wesker saw it. The hint of recognition as he stared at Jake and for a moment the two men stared at each other. But surely, he could not recognize Wesker in Jake´s face... right?

"What?" Such a callous attitude, not showing any hint of fear, maybe not knowing any after what he had gone through. Living only for the money he would be paid. Fifty million for his blood... for the antibodies contained within. An inheritance from his father.

"Nothing." Before the confrontation could go a step further or even escalate, a radio call came through and Wesker had to hide once more. Watching the enormous B.O.W. be delivered like a bad Christmas gift made him shudder. Someone did the job right. Or terribly wrong. Either way, he had to move and quickly.

The underground tunnels proved to be a suitable place for the moment, but he had to make haste. Taking out the J´avo in his way took only seconds as he hid behind every corner, listening for any familiar voices. Even this disguise could not fool Chris and he didn´t doubt it. Listening to the commotion outside he cursed being unable to jump into the fray. With his abilities, taking them out would have been so easy... yet he couldn´t use them. He felt so worthless...

At least he took out a few of the J´avo, snipers mostly, killing them before they could get a good shot at anyone. When another of those monstrosities showed up, Wesker wanted nothing more than to rip it to shreds, especially when it came too close to stepping on Chris. But Alpha team were skilled. But then he saw something far more impressive than the B.O.W. 

Jake, standing on top of one building, waited for it to stumble and then jumped on its back, grabbing hold of the device on the creature´s back and then pulled until it revealed the fragile opening inside. With his bare hands he punched the spot before jumping off. And Wesker recognized the feeling inside his chest as pride. With the last enemy gone, the square looked even more of a mess than before... but they were alive and only that mattered. Seeing Sherry shake Chris´ hand made him smile. He always helped out others and looked out for them.

"I already gave the pilot the coordinates."

"Thank you so much for your help." Birkin would be proud of her. Too bad he couldn´t see her now. The two parted and Wesker thought that was the end of it, right before Chris´ voice called out to Jake.

"Hey... Hey! Have we met?" Did he notice the resemblance? No, it couldn´t be, yet Wesker stood in the shadow, watching with baited breath.

"You jarheads all look the same to me pal, sorry." No, Chris was unique. One of a kind man and there would never be anyone else like him. Wesker watched the exchange and slowly relaxed.

"You´ve gotta be kidding me!" The sniper didn´t seem fond of his son at all.

"My mistake. Have a safe flight." A mistake. Nothing more. When the two vanished into the helicopter, Wesker continued to linger. He could not follow them there. But he was convinced they would be fine. Instead he watched over Chris as he continued to move forward with his team, entering the City Hall. Going inside would mean being seen and Wesker lingered behind, staring at the door, watching the movement behind the windows.

He missed the action. Being able to actually do something and use the power he had, even though often he played behind the scenes more. This reminded him of his S.T.A.R.S. days where getting his hands dirty meant that good work was done. 

There was nothing more he could do here. But there was one more thing he had to take care of.

\---

At least some parts of Edonia remained untouched by the war. Hair slicked back, albeit still black, Wesker was sporting his shades once more as he stood over the grave, a bundle of delicate freesia flowers in his arms. There was no fancy engraving. No angels or decorations. Just a simple headstone with a name and a date. Birth and death. Kneeling down he set the flowers on top of the cold stone and after a minute walked away. He had a list to take care of, starting right in this little town...


	6. Lost and found

There wasn´t any happy reunion when Wesker returned to America. Exhausted he went straight back home, relieved to find the apartment empty. Two weeks after seeing Chris last he spent taking out remaining J´avo, simply to analyze them as much as he could and obtain precious samples, but also crossing names off the list he made for himself. The men who once bought Jake would never buy another person, let alone a child. And he took satisfaction from seeing them beg and plead and fight back. Right before he watched all life leave their eyes.

His first hot shower in weeks felt like bliss and he stood there, watching the black dye from his hair wash out more and more and he scrubbed until it was a dull grey at best. Good enough. Not back to his original blond, but at least it was passable. The lenses have been ditched long ago, his eyes irritated from the constant wear. The silence all around was unnerving and after a moment he put on some classical music, the soft tunes of a piano filling the apartment. Yet he still felt on an edge. He missed Christmas and the ability to surprise Chris with a gift as he had the previous year (a custom-made holster with the man´s initials in the sleek leather).

Time to see how Jill was doing. What the report from Edonia said. Mood improved he sent a text to Jill and got dressed, not bothering with anything too dressy. A simple pair of pants did the job fine. He barely hung up the towel he used to dry his hair, an odd shade of grey now, he noticed with displeasure, before his phone began to ring. "That was quick." Jill´s name in capital letters stared back at him as he picked it up.

"Ye-"

" _Wesker!_ Where are you!?" Voice frantic on the other end, he frowned, the strange feeling now getting stronger.

"I just returned home from Edonia. Jill is-"

"Chris is gone! He vanished from the hospital! And Jake and Sherry are gone too! They never made it to the rendezvous point! I´m coming over right now!"

"Don´t. It´ll be quicker for me to go the HQ."

"Then hurry!" He couldn´t remember the last time he had been this frantic. Changing clothes took mere seconds and the music never did get turned off as he left. The cold air made his breath fog, but he never noticed, not even that he had left the shades behind as he made his way to the HQ. Moving faster than the human eyes could see, it was barely three minutes before he was in her office, actually somewhat breathing harder.

"They are gone!?" The last time he had seen both they were fine. Actually doing really well. How could he have been as careless as to leave them alone?

"The helicopter with Jake and Sherry has been blown out of the air and fell somewhere in the mountains. There have been traces of a fight and an underground cave system has been found with a few bodies, but... none of them were Jake or Sherry. They were just gone." She tossed a handful of photographs onto the desk and he inspected them briefly. "Ada Wong was supposedly seen around the area."

"Impossible. Ada Wong has been working in France the last month."

"Well, obviously someone has been lying. Because she matched the description Piers gave of the woman who killed of the rest of team Alpha!" Wesker froze, staring at Jill before she continued as he didn´t say a word. "A woman matching her description and identified on photographs has lead team Alpha into a trap. They... became chrysalids, then attacked Piers and Chris who were the only ones to make it out alive. While being treated at a hospital, Chris vanished and there has been no trace of him."

"It´s only been two weeks."

"Enough time for hell on earth before." Her voice was dry as he collapsed into a chair. Two weeks he had spent doing his own thing, not even reassuring himself that Jake made it to safety. That Chris fulfilled his task. He trusted in the man´s abilities and instead lost him. Lost them both. He only knew he had a son for a short while and now he had nothing. There was nothing left. 

"We are trying to find them both as we speak, but without any traces to follow..." She didn´t finish the sentence. She didn´t have to.

"I should have been there. Should have been there to protect Jake. To watch over Chris." Instead he left them to their own accord and this was the result. And suddenly, he just felt tired, older than he was, weary of everything he kept doing yielding next to no result. He should have died when the Tyrant 'killed' him.

"Wesker, there was nothing you could do. And we are still searching for them. We don´t know what happened, so they can still be fine. Just..." She didn´t know how to finish the sentence. Captured? Tortured? Seeing Wesker this broken was too much. "I´m... going to make some coffee. Just don´t give up hope, alright? Promise me that you won´t. After everything that happened, you can´t give up now. That´s not _the_ Captain Wesker I know."

"I´m no longer than man."

"You are him more than you ever were." She left the office for a moment, only minutes at most and returned with two steaming mugs of coffee. Instead of Wesker, she found a note left behind.

_I´m going back._

\---

The civil unrest in Edonia continued, but he didn´t pay any attention to that. Every few weeks he moved, combing through Eastern Europe, calling out contacts who hoped the man was dead and did everything to repay the debts they owed. Ada Wong was still in France however, meeting with him briefly, unaware of having been in Edonia months ago or even seeing Redfield. "Perhaps it was a mirage. Or a really good costume." Neither knew how close she was to the truth back then.

Now Wesker was back in Edonia, closer to the Russian border. Once in a while he made sure to visit her grave and talk to _her_ as though she was still alive. Only once the local priest asked who he was, offering prayers and condolences, but Wesker cared nothing for such drivel. He just needed to find them. His son and the man he loved were still out there somewhere, he just had to find out where. Passing by a B.S.A.A. jeep he briefly glanced at the soldiers, but like the rest of the townsfolk paid the no more attention. They were all over the world after all. But this time he missed that the patch on a man´s shoulder said _North America_ instead of _Europe_. 

Entering the dark bar he ignored the stares and just made his way to the bar. Hair back to blond and eyes hidden behind his shades, he fit in rather nicely. Being in public without any fear, or at least much less of it, was a pleasant experience and enabled him to make connections easier, ask questions before his accent was pointed out. But as long as he had money, even that was ignored, making it almost too easy to solve the most problems.

The glass was at least clean as the woman poured the dark alcohol in it. Everyone was minding their own business. Five months since he found out that his son and Chris were gone and only a few days ago he heard from one of his contacts about a troublesome American bodyguard who was selling his services close to the Edonian border. It took Wesker mere hours to get there, but the elusive bodyguard was nowhere to be found.

But they heard about him. A tall man with dark hair and strong arms, but a bad drunk and a worse customer. His money was good though and that was the only reason why he hadn´t been kicked out of a few bars. His Chris a moody drunk didn´t sound right, but neither did calling the man 'his'. Briefly he considered disguising himself once more, but decided against it after considering that maybe seeing him would push Chris back into action. His options were limited and Wesker didn´t like it. The door opened again and someone walked in, but he was too lost in thought to care. This bar was one of those the bodyguard apparently frequented...

"It´s rude to wear shades inside." The glass nearly tumbled from his hand as the familiar voice spoke right beside him. Someone sat at the bar, lifting a hand to order and Wesker´s throat felt dry as he set the empty glass down, the bourbon burning down his throat. When the hand moved to grab at his glasses he gripped his wrist tightly and turned to look at the man, keeping his expression as neutral as always.

_Chris._

He looked like hell warmed over. Civilian clothes suited him, but his eyes were sad, something inside them gone. He hadn´t shaved in a while, either. "Ooh, touchy subject?" And the man´s eyes stared right back at him. It should have taken less than a second. Wesker kept his appearance the same, but instead of recognition he saw amusement in his eyes. Chris didn´t know who he was. And Wesker wanted to laugh and cry at the same time.

"You´re obnoxious." 

"Sounds about right. Though I heard worse." The man´s dry chuckle sounded pained as he downed the first glass the woman set before him without as much as a flinch. Then another one and Wesker´s eyes never left him. Since when did he drink like this? "See something you like?"

And since when was the man this bold? The cocky smile suited his tired face almost too much and Wesker didn´t appreciate what he saw, but maybe a small part of him did. The woman behind the bar refilled both glasses, frowning at Chris.

"You make a mess of my bar, you´re out. Don´t go starting trouble again."

"Hey, I just got back from a job and want to relax. So just keep 'em coming."

"What? Another man pay to have his ass protected by an American?

"Guess we get the job done better." Another frown from the woman before she walked to the other end of the bar and Chris´ eyes were once more on him. "But this time I´m not the only American here. So, what brings _you_ to this shithole of a town? Can´t be business since there is none to be done. At least legal ones."

"I´ve been looking for something I lost." And he found him. Without any recollection of who he was or all that he had done for the world. The irony was not lost on Wesker.

"Good luck with that. Let me know if you find my memories somewhere." Chris´ laugh was almost genuine. Almost.

"You don´t remember anything?" Nothing at all. Not even Wesker? He felt hurt.

"I remember waking up in a hospital and finding some clothes to get out. Then... it´s a blur. Figured I was one of those assholes fighting a losing war or something. This kind of body doesn´t come from nothing, so I put it to a good use." At least his cognitive skills were not bad. He knew that he was connected to the military in some way and used that to his advantage.

"What about you? Military business?"

"I guess you could say that." His business was concluded. He should send Jill a message, call her right now to send the B.S.A.A. here to get Chris and force his memories back.

"Chris Redfield. At least that´s what the dog tag said." The man held out his hand, a friendly smile on his face and after a moment of hesitation, Wesker took it.

_"Albert Wesker."_ Nothing. No recognition at all. But the firm squeeze of the hand on his gloved one lingered for a moment longer.

"Good luck with your search, Wesker. Let me know if you need a bodyguard. I could use some better paying work than watching mafia assholes make deals. Feels wrong." Wesker wanted to tell him so badly that it felt wrong because he was a good guy, but instead nodded. Hire Chris as a bodyguard and lead him to the B.S.A.A. should be doable. "How long will you be staying?"

"A few days, maybe a week or two, depends on how long it takes me to get what I want." Mind reeling, Wesker was weighing his options, all of them, and slowly, a selfish one began to surface, forcing its way forward until all he could think of was the fact that Chris didn´t know who it was. "What are your rates?"

"Depends on the work you want me to do. Got nothing to lose, anyway." Those words hurt and Wesker turned to look at him again, gaze lingering on the man´s powerful body. The past months did nothing to change his built and it showed. And Chris noticed him staring, a smirk on his lips as he finished yet another glass and motioned for another. "Sorry, I don´t do that kind of work for money."

"Don´t even consider putting me on the same level as the scum I spent weeks getting rid of, _Redfield_. Know your place." Wesker´s growl came before he intended to speak and he watched the other´s eyes widen, stare at him with mouth open for a moment before he winced. Rubbing his head, Chris muttered somewhat of an apology before his eyes lingered on Wesker´s gloved hands.

"No fingerprints left anywhere, shades, dark clothes and an accent. You look like a hitman if I ever saw one and I did. And from what you said... one with an agenda. Well then, if you don´t want to buy my services for that-"

"I wouldn´t be paying for sex. Either you want it or not." He was losing his mind for sure. Years of deprivation and need forced the words out before his mind could once more regain control of his actions and he finished the glass of bourbon, letting the alcohol burn out the remains. Or perhaps it was at fault for making him say that kind of shit.

"That sounds more interesting. I think... you´d be my type. If I had one." Chris was shameless as he spoke, not even hiding how he looked the man over once more. "Are you staying anywhere near?" 

This wasn´t happening. Perhaps he had finally lost his mind to the virus and the past years have been a mere dream. Chris Redfield suffered a traumatic memory loss, worked as a bodyguard in Eastern Europe and didn´t even recognize him of all people and now they were talking about... having sex? 

Wesker was a highly intelligent man. A genius, so to speak, capable of superhuman feats and actions. And yet now he felt reduced to nothing as he tried to come up with the most suitable reply and he knew he had to refuse and get on the phone with Jill Valentine and have her come to retrieve Chris before resuming his search for his son. But instead he set money on the bar top for their drinks and slid off the stool, standing at full height, looking as imposing as always. And he saw from the corner of his eye that Chris was already moving to stand as well, eyes amused.

_"Yes, I am."_


	7. Be selfish for once

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Sex.

This was madness. Wesker was sure that he had lost his mind as they stepped out of the bar and into the evening light. Very few people were out at this time and the street lights were only flickering. The B.S.A.A. had moved away, probably to some other area for now and Wesker felt relief as he lead Chris away from the bar and to the best hotel this place had. Which wasn´t much to speak of to begin with. Even as they entered there was no one to see them, the receptionist gone and the floors empty. He took the stairs, trying to give himself more time to change this, to reach for his phone and call Jill. Instead he grabbed the room key and unlocked the door.

"Huh, odd. I´m staying here as well and never saw you. Then again, I did just come back from a job. Guess this makes things easier." The cocky smile suited him, Wesker noticed, but the lack of memories still worried the older man. And the fact that they apparently lived at the same hotel for now.

"A drink?" Just a bit more time. Find the resolve to call her and bring Chris back, jog his memory enough.

"Nah, had enough at the bar. Besides, I want my head mostly clear for this. Nothing to be done about what I already drank. You look rather fine though." Already taking his jacket off, Chris tossed it carelessly onto the hook by the door. "And I mean that both ways."

Chills ran up Wesker´s spine and he slowly took his coat off. Not much longer now. "So, how should we do this? Or are we just going with the flow? Because that´s fine with me." So carefree, living without the memories that plagued the Chris Redfield he knew. Living without fear or nightmares. What if it wasn´t right to tear him away from this haven he found, sad as it was, and force him back into a world that made hell seem like paradise?

His mind was reeling as he thought of what was right and wrong and it was becoming more and more difficult to tell the two apart. And Chris watched him, he could feel the inquisitive gaze on his back as he walked to the window to close the curtains, the only source of light now the small bedside lamp that Chris turned on once he sat on the bed.

He dreamed of a moment like this so many times and dreams were all he had and now Chris knew his name, stared at him and instead of yelling or shooting or anything else, he was smiling that strange smile. Innocent, but cocky. The same one that drew Wesker in ages ago and continued to have the same effect even now.

"You´re thinking about it, aren´t you? How about I make things a bit easier." Chris stood up, walking over to Wesker and without thinking twice pushed the man into a wall. For a second, Wesker assumed that he recalled everything and Chris attacked him, but instead he found lips pressing to his own and his shoulders pinned to the wall, leaving his arms mostly free. The grip was far from bruising, but feeling his strength was remarkable.

Whatever resolve he had was gone that very second and instantly he kissed the man back, gloved hands gripping onto his shirt and he was quick to use his height to his advantage. He always had. Even back at the S.T.A.R.S. office, when Chris tried to surprise him and get the upper hand at least for a moment, Wesker won. And now it was no different. After a moment his arm slid around the younger man´s waist, pressing him closer, forcing him to lean back just slightly and the next second Wesker´s tongue invaded his mouth.

And Wesker couldn´t remember the last time he felt so alive.

It was every bit as he recalled and then even better as they kissed, Chris´ arms rising to grip onto the shirt he wore, wrinkling the shoulders, but Wesker couldn´t care less. Kissing him after so long, after he thought he knew that it would never happen again, felt bliss and the kiss would never stop if he had a say in it. Basic human function, such as breathing, did though and he pulled away, staring at the man, soft eyes amused and impressed.

"Well, damn." Chris chuckled, a beautiful sound before his hands let go and instead he reached up, touching the man´s shades once more. "But if we´re doing this, I want to see your eyes, Wesker."

_Show me your eyes!_ That was what Chris yelled back in Africa as seven minutes began to run out.

The brief memory made him frown, but he was not moving to stop the hands as Chris removed them, eyes closing for a moment. Were they red or were they blue? Not even he knew now. When the shades left his face he still couldn´t bring himself to look at Chris. What if the second he did the man would remember anything? It took all the resolve he had to remind himself that if that were to happen, then so be it. This wasn´t about them. This was about the world itself needing Chris Redfield back.

So he opened his eyes and looked at the man, staring at him while Chris stared back. There was flicker of recognition, but then it was gone as the other flinched for a second. "Damn, don´t know why you´re hiding those."

"My eyes are... sensitive." Not entirely a lie either, since bright light made them somewhat hurt. Another soft chuckle and then he was being pulled to the bed and pushed down onto it. Who was in charge again? And why was he having such trouble remembering.

Not provided with time to ponder this when Chris took his shirt off, Wesker felt his mouth water. He had refrained from watching the man in the nude or even semi-nude state during his nightly visits, but seeing him undress so willingly was fair game. Body every bit as impressive as he recalled, if not more, Wesker saw a few new scars on him. His chest, on his right side, below the ribcage, had a most prominent one, as if left by a claw.

Instantly his hands were drawn to it, brushing over the skin, separated still by the leather gloves he wore. So many marks and he should have been there to protect him from getting hurt. Instead he wasted so much time... "Gloves next." He heard Chris demand and once he considered it, Wesker bit the end of one fingertip, pulling it off, then the other, setting them on the side of the bed and hesitated for a second before his bare hands touched the man´s body.

"You can touch me more. I´m not going to break." He felt Chris shudder, nipples hardening and it wasn´t from the air. He always was responsive to the touch and Wesker knew exactly which spot to touch, where to bite down hard and where to caress to draw the most lovely sounds. Without thinking he pulled the man down onto his lap, strong thighs on either side of his own and the weight of the man made his pants feel even tighter. He only dreamed of this moment...

"Kiss me again." Another demand, almost an order and Wesker obeyed, capturing his lips in another heated kiss, bar hands now tying to touch all of the man at once, feeling every scar he could find with the tips of his fingers and brushing over it as though to erase the very existence of such a mark. But nothing could ever mar his body. No, Chris was too good for that. If anything, they showed his power, his stubbornness to die and his determination. All the things Wesker once loved about him and still did.

Soon his lips moved down to Chris´ neck, sucking on the point where his pulse felt the strongest each time and he could not resist nipping at the hot skin. His lips left a mark and he took a moment to admire it before Wesker decided it was not prominent enough and helped it shine even more. Perfect.

"Feels like you´re worshipping me here." Wesker gave the man an amused look, aware of his actions and having zero intention to stop. "Do you have anything for this? Because I imagine... doing it dry would be a pain." So shameless. But he raised a good point with this question and Wesker frowned. He didn´t actually have anything suitable, sans for the hair wax and that would be more sticky than- "Don´t worry about it. I have something in my pocket. The nights here get lonely and boring. Not this one though."

Speechless, Wesker stared at the man as Chris reached into his pants´ pocket and pulled out a simple clear tube with some kind of gel inside it. He knew enough of the local writing to be able to tell what it was. _Personal Lubricant for Men_. Why did he carry something like this? 

It took that small tube for Wesker to see red, though his eyes remained blue, and he pinned Chris to the bed, straddling him to keep his legs in place and arms pinned above his head. "And why, pray tell, would you carry something like this around, especially after returning from a supposedly bodyguard job, Christopher?" Something about what he said made the man shudder, a soft moan escaping him that was almost enough to distract the blond.

"Told you. Lonely and boring nights. I don´t do this kind of thing with clients. Or... anyone really."

"So I´m the first?"

"As far as I remember." That was good enough. But he still didn't release the man, instead attacked his neck again, leaving another angry red mark on the other side before his lips slid down to his chest. "H-hey, who said you´re in charge here?"

"Of course I am in charge. Why would you assume otherwise, Christopher?

"Just call me Chris." The man´s cheeks were flushed with such a lovely red hue.

"I prefer Christopher." Wesker´s smirk was obvious and once more he turned his attention to the man´s chest, kissing and sucking, teasing his nipples and paid them extra attention while his hands started their task of removing the rest of Chris´ clothing. He wanted him naked right now and the man had only the practice Wesker and him had in the past to thank for not ending up with torn pants and underwear. 

"You´re good at this. Do it often?"

"You talk too much." He always did. Sometimes begging for more or moaning his name, which were always Wesker´s favourite, but sometimes his mouth would ramble on and on and the man would need silencing with a kiss. Or something else.

"Then how about we find something to occupy my mouth?" The comment alone was enough to make him shudder and when the other easily sat up and began to undo his shirt, Wesker let him. He never wanted anyone so badly as he wanted Chris right this moment and it showed, the man´s lips once more on his own, fingers clumsily undoing the buttons before he was able to pull the shirt open and push it down his shoulders.

"You really are my type. If I had one, I guess. Maybe you´ll just become the new standard."

"Stop talking so much." Wesker growled, not enjoying the idea of being a type, some kind of comparison for anyone else. Chris only laughed and kissed him again, hands now eagerly working on his pants before he pulled away to glare at the belt buckle, tugging and pulling until it finally gave. 

"Stop wearing such annoying clothes." The man whined before pulling the zipper down at last. As far as he was concerned, it wasn´t fair that he was the only one naked, especially since he could see the body hiding beneath the clothes. And he wasn´t wrong in the slightest. The moment he got all clothes off of Wesker he wanted to fuck him. Or be fucked by him, he didn´t care, his heart going crazy. Every touch sent sparks through his frame and every kiss left him wanting more. His body responded so quickly it was as if he was trained to do so, as though Wesker knew where to touch him to draw out the best reaction.

Of course, considering they only just met, such a thing was impossible.

With the icy stare on him, Chris contemplated his options for a moment before deciding to give the man what he wanted. Silence from the brunet and he grinned at him, lightly pecking his lips, almost playfully so before leaning down and taking his cock into his mouth without as much as a warning. 

The reaction was immediate. Wesker tensed, a faint, shocked sound escaping him as he stared at Chris on his elbows and knees, sucking him off, the man´s tongue doing ungodly things to his length. This definitely was a great way to silence the man and for a while he couldn´t do a thing. Pale fingers slid through dark hair, neither pulling or pushing, just rested there as Chris swallowed him whole, sucking hard.

It wasn´t until he saw the man´s hand sneak behind his body, between his spread legs, that he saw what else he was doing. His mouth felt dry as he watched the nearly empty tube fall on the bed a moment later and the pleased moan around his length. This felt too much like a fever dream, too real and too intense and he pulled away from Chris before things could escalate too soon. When the younger man made a disappointed sound he nearly let him resume, but he had other plans for tonight.

What a view. Pushing Chris onto his back, legs spread and two fingers pushing in and out of that amazing body, the man was almost shameless with the display. He looked every bit as beautiful as Wesker recalled. Those seven minutes back in Africa were never enough, but one last moment of a love that used to be. And now all the love he felt towards the man was back, clouding his judgement and he didn´t care at all. All he wanted was to kiss him again and again until they were both about to pass out from lack of air.

And he did, hands once more wandering over Chris´ body, squeezing at his thighs, hands groping at that perfect ass as Chris let out a moan into his mouth. How could one man be this erotic? Wesker didn´t understand at all. And in the end it didn´t matter. The man´s free hand pulled him close, fingers sliding through his hair, messing it up in a playful manner which made Wesker mock-glare at the man, blue eyes meeting a warm hazel. All his emotions always reflected so clearly in them and Chris never learned to hide it. And right now, the desire was almost too obvious.

"Fuck me." As if he needed encouragement.

Far from it. When the slicked hand gripped his cock, the leftover lube gliding over the length, he recalled just briefly what Chris said about lonely nights. So he used his hands often it seemed. The idea was as arousing as the sight of the man like this. Eager and ready, legs parted to allow him the perfect view. If he could only take a photo... wait. 

_He could._

Such a simple idea and yet years ago it would be impossible. Now, with the rise of technology, there was nothing in his way. Without thinking twice he reached for his discarded pants, quickly finding his phone and the idea of making call did not even occur to him as he found the camera. He didn´t ask permission, merely took a photo of Chris like this, the man´s gorgeous eyes staring straight at him.

"Hey, don´t go showing that around..."

"I wouldn´t dream of it. This view if for my eyes only." Wesker was more than pleased, setting the phone aside for the moment and instead kissed him again, settling between the man´s spread thighs and the head of his member eagerly prodded at his entrance. A gasp was his reward and Chris arching into him, silently begging for more. 

And Wesker complied, once more kissing the man as the head of his length pressed to the puckered entrance, pushing through with more ease than he expected and with one smooth thrust he was inside him. They were one. For a while he didn´t move, couldn't, afraid that it might break the spell that allowed this moment to come to fruition, but when he felt the other rock his hips upward and demand more in his own silent way, Wesker gave in.

Unlike their last time together, this time there was no time limit. No minutes counting down and no threat of losing control. Wesker took his time, slowly thrusting, drawing out every second for as long as he could. He was gentle, but firm at the same time, enjoying every little sound that Chris made and the younger man wasn´t even trying to be subtle about the pleasure he felt. Strong hands gripped at his back, leaving stinging marks as Wesker thrust inside him over and over again, his powerful body arching into Wesker´s with his length trapped between them, twitching and wet.

Over and over again their kissed and Wesker didn´t want this moment to ever end. Their bodies were every bit as compatible as years ago, even when the younger man bulked up, changing over the years. If anything, it made Wesker even more amazed at how well they fit together. There could only ever be one Chris Redfield and the man belonged to him. Thrusting harder, as if to drive that point home, he felt the other gasp beneath him, another stinging mark left on his back. And Wesker just didn´t stop.

He continued to move, alternating the pace as he felt, giving in to the desire to hear Chris cry out and moan his name whenever he pleased, pushing harder, gripping his hips hard enough to bruise the skin. Time didn´t matter. The world outside of this hotel room did not matter. For now it was just about the two of them and nothing else. Lips already bruised and reddened from the intense kisses, Chris moaned his name again, then a second time, sounding almost frantic as he arched his back off the bed and into Wesker´s frame. A second later the man came, liquid heat spurting between their bodies and Wesker stared at his beautiful expression, etching every second into his mind forever.

The way he tightened was too much for Wesker himself. One last thrust, burying himself deep inside the man and he came as well, tightening his grip briefly, panting as he released deep inside the other and minutes seemed to pass before he slowly pulled out, carefully, lips gently brushing over Chris´ own in a most tender kiss. Loving. Pouring all the feelings he couldn´t speak into the kiss he pressed their bodies together and just held Chris in his arms and the other man let him, something deep inside forcing him to cling to Wesker, lest he would disappear otherwise.

"That was... something else." The younger man was still trying to catch his breath, smiling as he brushed his fingers through Wesker´s messy hair. The man laid beside him still close, touching him as if concerned. "Hey, I´m fine. Though I think I might just crash in your room tonight. Don´t think I could walk to mine." And even if he could, he didn´t want to.

"I don´t mind." He wouldn´t let him go tonight, even if the other wanted to leave. Wesker gave in to the weakness after all and ended up hugging Chris close, not saying a word, aware that the other wanted to ask something. But when nothing came he sighed. "Go ahead."

"That´s wasn´t really like a one-night-stand kind of thing. Didn´t feel like one, anyway." Not that he would know, but this kind of gentleness wasn´t something he thought of when he imagined it.

"I guess you might be right."

"So... wanna talk about it?" He didn´t. He really didn´t, but rarely could he deny Chris anything.

"You look like him. A lot. Your manners, looks, even your attitude, they are all there." Never mind that they were the same person. His hold tightened as he reached for the phone he had set on the nightstand. It was a shameful thing to do, but he ignored it as he hit the _stop_ button on the video recording and turned the sound off for now.

"Who was it?" Chris´ voice was soft and Wesker could almost see him kicking himself for that question. Talking before thinking once more.

"The only man I will ever love." The other tensed before relaxing, seemingly accepting his role as a replacement. If he only knew.

Wesker turned the light off, grabbing the edge of the covers to tug them over their bodies. For a while longer, just a few more days, he wanted to live in this dream. Holding Chris close still he didn´t let go for ever a second, things like showers having to wait until morning.

So when he felt the other relax in his embrace even more and his breathing become gentler, Wesker remained awake, wanting to savour the moment for as long as he could.

_"I love you, My Star."_


	8. Found, yet lost.

He fucked up. Wesker fucked up so badly and he knew it all too well, but instead of rushing to rectify the mistake he was fixing his hair in the mirror while Chris slept in the bed once more. He woke up to find the man staring at him. No gun or any other weapon in hand, no hands around his throat, no memories of their past together. Just Chris watching him with a content smile before drawing him into a kiss. That was in the morning and they haven´t left the bed until noon. Or at least, Chris hasn´t. 

His reflection was glaring back at him, blue eyes judging his actions. And the regret he thought would be present had yet to come. Or maybe it was because he didn´t regret a second of it. At first his name and appearance were used to jog the man´s memory, then he lost control of the situation and now he fucked Chris Redfield twice. Perhaps his smile could be at least a little less smug. Looking at his phone he stared at the photo he took, fumbling with the buttons before realizing he had no idea how to actually make it private. Not that anyone else would see, but still...

And then there was the video. It was a spur of the moment kind of thing, when he stopped thinking about what he was doing and instead just did it. He even thought the recording would be useless, but deep inside knew that just the man´s voice would have been enough. Now... he watched Chris´ face as he moaned, grasping at the pillows, then another man´s back, blond hair tickling over his cheek before they kissed. He had yet to check the sound, once he would be alone, but he knew that after this was all over, this would guide him through many a lonely night.

Jill was right. He was pathetic.

Which reminded him that he should call her and soon. After all, he found Chris Redfield. The man everyone needed back and instead of ensuring that happens he fucked him in the hotel where they were both staying. One call and the B.S.A.A. would arrive to retrieve the man and bring him back, taking him away from Wesker for good...

Just a while _longer._

He wanted to cling to this brief moment of happiness in his life for a while longer, before he would feel even worse than before. But at least he found one of the two people he needed to recover. Chris was alive and well, though his memories were locked away and not even Wesker could unlock them. Brief moments of clarity flashed in his eyes, but that was it. Nothing more happened. Returning to the bedroom he sat on the edge of the bed, halfway dressed, shirt still unbuttoned. Chris hadn´t woken up yet, not even as Wesker showered.

He watched him sleep like so many times before. Becoming the 'ghost' that haunted the man´s apartment amused him and he continued doing that even after he tried to stop. Even continued to clean his office, annoyed that a grown man like that just worked in such a messy place. Reaching out he brushed his fingers through the man´s messy hair and smiled. He was adorable.

"Hm, morning..." Chris´ eyes didn´t even open as he turned his head, moving closer to Wesker, leaning into the hand, but that was it as far as moving went. He was too comfortable and sore to bother.

"More like noon. Have you rested?" Watching the man´s eyes open and fix on him as he smiled and laid onto his back, stretching lazily, remnants of their passion from earlier on his body obvious, left Wesker´s mouth feeling a little dry. He could see the many marks he had left on the man. His neck and chest were littered with kiss marks and tiny bite wounds, imprints of perfect teeth left in the flesh. 

"About as much as I could. You look fresh." Chris´ hand reached out, touching his face and he tensed for a moment. 

"I just showered. I thought we could get something to eat. If you want. You used up a lot of energy after all."

"And will I be using more?" He watched Chris sit up, the covers falling to reveal more of his body, more of the marks Wesker left on him. He always enjoyed doing this. Back in S.T.A.R.S. not a week passed without Chris complaining about it and Wesker leaving new ones on his skin. Especially ones he could not see right away. The back of his neck, the inside of his thighs, that magnificent rear, of course, was one of his favourites.

"I think it can be arranged."

"Then I guess getting something to eat makes sense." The man slowly rose from the bed, shameless as he showed off his body and Wesker watched him before seeing the mess that were the sheets. Better get room service to deal with this. "By the way, how long will you be staying here"

Wesker pondered the question for a moment, considering his options, what he knew he had to do and when, how much time there was left and after seeing the questioning look he stood up from the bed and smiled. 

_"A week."_

\---

A week of bliss and guilt followed, but not one minute has been touched by regret. They were inseparable, spending more of their time in the hotel room where they couldn´t be seen by any prying eyes. And Chris didn´t remember a thing. Sometimes, Wesker tried to open up his mind and retrieve the lost memories, but nothing seemed to work and truthfully, he wasn´t trying that hard. He had no doubt that someone else would be more successful, since he only greedily devoured the man´s attention and affection, as temporary as both were.

The sex was even more amazing than he recalled. Waking up with Chris between his legs simply because the man was in the mood or straddling him, teasing him awake, were equally new and familiar at the same time. And he made sure to repay the man as well. But as each day turned into a night and Chris curled up to sleep in his arms, Wesker became more and more aware that their time together was drawing to a close.

"So, what do you do for a living?" Chris´ head was in his lap as Wesker read the newest articles regarding Neo-Umbrella and B.O.W. and switched to the camera to snap another photo of the man. He acquired quite the collection by now.

"I´m a scientist. Among other things. I guess you could say I have no one true occupation. And you are a bodyguard..."

"Yep. Couldn't find another job without knowing who I am, but working like this nobody gave a damn. Pays pretty well, too."

"Putting your life on the line for others. What a noble calling." So much like the usual Chris.

"You think so? I didn´t really have any close calls. Guess I´m just good at what I do... or what I did before." Again he frowned, trying to remember, but when nothing came he chose to stare into Wesker´s eyes instead, the same cocky, yet innocent smile on his face. "You should hire me."

"I´m afraid that´s impossible." The smile faded away and Chris sat up, turning to stare at him.

"But if you hire me, then this week could last-"

"Christopher, something like that is impossible. I still need to finish a job I came to do and you... soon it will be time for you to remember everything. Because eventually you will do and then there will be no place for someone like me in your life." The confused look in his eyes made Wesker sigh and he brought their heads together, pressing his forehead to his temporary lover´s. "I can only hope you will forget about this week. And if not, that you will eventually forgive me."

"That sounds... ominous. I don´t like it. Wesker-"

"Please, don´t ask this of me again. Tomorrow I will have to leave and it´s already breaking my heart."

"Because I look like your lover?"

_Because you are him._

But the words never came out. Instead, Wesker only smiled and pulled the man into a heated kiss, the phone set aside for now as they became lost in each other for the last time. Over and over again, neither willing to stop and accept that tomorrow was the end. Wesker´s lips left many new marks all over Chris´ body and the other man did not hesitate to pay him back, biting and scratching at his skin. Usually, any mark, even those left by bullets, healed within seconds, but perhaps out of pure desire to preserve these for as long as was possible they didn´t, stinging as he showered, marring his pale skin. Wesker treasured them so much.

In the early morning hours, Chris fell asleep in his arms and Wesker let him, playing with his hair, watching him rest, taking one last photograph as a memory of their week together to cling to in his darkest hours. 

When the sun began to rise, Wesker washed and dressed, removing any remains of his presence from the room, then spend the next hours sitting beside Chris and watching the man. When it was time to go, he wrote down a simple note, setting it on the nightstand. When Chris began to wake up, Wesker was gone and all there was left was a piece of paper with wet marks smearing the elegant cursive writing.

_Forgive me, My Star._

\---

"Where the fuck were you! Everyone here is frantic because of what is going on and there have been more reports coming from China about Neo-Umbrella!"

"Jill, I´m not in the mood right now. I called to give you an update." His throat felt sore. Staring at the ruined square in Edonia where his lover and his son first met he made his way to the graveyard to say goodbye once more.

"Well, I have one for you! We found Jake! And Sherry! They are in China somewhere, but both are alive! Neo-Umbrella has been using them as test subjects, so we don´t know what state they are in, but they are alive!" She didn´t mention that Ada Wong has been sighted several times in the area as well.

The other end of the line went silent as Wesker stared at a grave, placing fresh flowers on top of the soil. Someone had cleaned it while he was gone and he knew it was the priest. "So he´s... still alive?"

"And we´re working on getting them out of there, but it takes some time. Neo-Umbrella is... powerful. More than we anticipated. But it´s not Simmons or The Family who are getting in the way here. Anyway, what update did you mean?"

_"I found Christopher."_

"WHAT!?" Pulling the phone away from his ear he sighed, hoping she would not ask too many details.

"Kindly refrain from shouting. But yes, I found him. I will send you the coordinates and his usual spots so you can send someone to get him. But he doesn´t remember anything, Jill." Touching the cold headstone he smiled, brushing his fingertips over the name engraved there before turning away. Time to find their son.

"What do you mean by that? And Wesker, your voice is really strange. Did you catch a cold?"

"I assure you I´m feeling fine. And I mean that he had post-traumatic amnesia. He forgot about S.T.A.R.S., the Air Force, B.S.A.A., you... me. Jill, I spoke to him, told him my name and he still didn´t know who I was." He couldn´t help the sadness that laced his voice and for a while the other end was silent.

"Wesker... when did you find him?"

"A week ago. I will send you the coordinates now, then meet you at my place when I return a few days from now. I want to know all there is about Jake being found. I will linger around to ensure the B.S.A.A. will retrieve him and don´t hurt him."

"Okay. Take care. I will prepare everything for your return. Oh, I cleaned your place since I know how much you hate dust and all."

"Thank you, Jill."

"You´re welcome, Captain." The line went dead and Wesker put the phone away. By now Chris probably realized that he wasn´t coming back, yet the note might not make any sense to him. Unless he would look at the back of his watch and connect the dots. He was a selfish man after all.

\---

Two days later he watched Chris at the bar, hidden from view, his heart feeling heavy as he saw the amount he drank and smoked. Such an awful habit and he had smelled it on his clothes before how obvious distaste caused the man to refrain from indulging while around. Now he seemed all caught up. The B.S.A.A. around were so badly inconspicuous, yet Chris never noticed them as he ordered another drink before telling the woman off.

He hurt him yet _again_. Wesker should have known that his presence could only cause pain.

The young sniper was skilled when it came to restraining someone with Chris´ strength and Wesker moved around the room to watch the two men. The way Chris flinched when shown the photos reminded him of the way he reacted when he saw his eyes the first time. Recognition, but he couldn´t tell why or how. 

And then something jogged his memory, the man´s eyes wide as he stared at the sniper´s shoulder. The B.S.A.A. patch clearly visible, bringing back the memories that he pushed back, or at least some of them. Enough for the others to stand up all around and gather. And that was Wesker´s cue to leave, vanishing from the bar for good this time. Time to head home. He never saw Chris frantically look around and or heard him call out his name.

\---

Jill was already at his apartment when he returned. Exhausted from the travel, Wesker had no time to rest as he sat down with her, not even minding that she ordered food again. But by the time she managed to finish half her glass he was down three, going over the report on Jake she brought along. Ignoring her curious look he refilled it again before tossing the file on the table.

"Ada Wong was not involved. She wasn´t even in China at half the time specified. I would know because I met her in Europe, but the evidence of a dead man is useless in this case."

"Then someone who looks just like her is responsible for that and ordering around all the J´avo. I´m waiting for a few more things to come together before sending a team to China. So don´t go doing anything reckless, alright?"

"I won´t." Now that surprised her. "I already fucked up enough. More than that." He took a sip from the glass, then another. Already he had taken the shades off and taking a deep breath he slowly sighed. "I´m going to take a shower. Plane flights always leave me feeling gross."

"Sure. I´ll wait in case you want to talk some more still." Wesker slowly got up, fatigued and after a moment of hesitation went to his bedroom, stripping off his shirt already on the way before tossing it into the hamper.

"Wesker, you forgot your phone-holy fuck!" Jill stared at the man´s back in shock, the marks bright and red against his skin. Seeing him tense she dropped the phone on the bed and walked closer. "Wesker... what... did you do?"

"...I slept with him."


	9. The Hero the world deserves

There wasn´t much of a celebration going on at the B.S.A.A., even with the return of their best captain. Instead, Chris has been tested over and over again and Jill showed him the detailed reports on his condition. Perfect results. But his memory seemed to be coming back selectively, allowing him to recall certain events while others meant nothing to him. Six months ago in Edonia, he had no idea what happened, what caused the loss of his team. He never mentioned a word about the week with Wesker, perhaps having convinced himself it was just a fever dream from drinking too much.

But shortly before his departure to China, Jill caught him staring at a piece of paper, his watch in his hand.

"Jill... do you think there´s a way that Wesker could have survived?" Only recently he remembered Africa and what occurred and ever since then, more nightmares returned to the man. 

"I don´t know... I mean you shot him and he fell into burning lava of a volcano..." And even that wasn´t enough, but it did something else. Oh, how badly she wanted to tell him the truth, tell him everything that happened in the past years.

"But no body was found. No remains at all and... Somehow I think that he´s just too stubborn to die like that."

"Chris, are you asking me or are you hoping that he´s still alive?"

"I... I don´t know. _And that scares me_."

She never told Wesker about this conversation. Or the new nightmares Chris was now suffering from, since the blond man stopped visiting him at night. Instead he focused on his new research team, the best minds he could acquire, including young woman finishing her studies who already made great steps in the virology field. Nobody questioned the faceless man who provided them with the opportunity to help the world. Not for the money.

Wesker avoided the headquarters as much as he could, once more forcing himself to work until exhaustion and even beyond. Anything to stop thinking about Chris. After showing Jill evidence that Ada Wong could not have been the one responsible for the vanishing of his son or what happened to team Alpha, there was even more confusion regarding the photographic evidence of a woman who looked just like her. After that, Ada left, following the intel from Wesker about a submarine that held more answers.

And then the woman showed up she had the most annoying smug smile on her face that made Jill even more irritated. When the two women showed up at Wesker´s apartment, Jill with boxes of pizza and Ada with a bottle of expensive bourbon, the man knew trouble was right behind the corner. But instead, they finally received some answers.

"Carla Radames used to look so much different, or at least the old photos show as much. Simmons really did have a disturbing hobby. And really, purple and red together clash so much, shows her lack of style. Carla, or Ada Wong, as she is called now, is the head of Neo-Umbrella and the one responsible for the disappearance of Wesker junior and agent Birkin." Wesker didn´t appreciate his son being mentioned like that.

"So Simmons is in China now and that woman... probably as well. There´s been a lot happening and Neo-Umbrella is at the centre of it all. Lanshiang´s been under code red for a while now." Jill wasn´t liking the sound of this. Something big was happening and she felt detached from it all. All the action, all the things that she could do to help. "So Simmons and The Family were behind it after all. Along with this... Carla. And if we find her, we can find Jake and Sherry and maybe bring Neo-Umbrella down for good." Jill tossed the end of the pizza back into the box and leaned back in the chair, closing her eyes. She had just about enough of lounging around and watching from the sidelines.

"Hm, sounds like fun. I think I´ll go to China for a bit, see if I can improve that poor woman´s fashion sense before it´s too late." Ada laughed, setting the empty bourbon glass on the counter aware that it would leave a ring there and walked to the balcony. "I will let you know if I find anything interesting. Have fun." She winked and then she was gone, leaving Jill to flip off the air before she watched Wesker wipe the counter before setting the glass in the sink. Always the perfectionist.

"The B.S.A.A. have left for China then?" Several teams have been sent to deal with bioterrorist attacks in Waiyip, Chris in charge of Alpha team once more and the trust they put into the man was stunning. It only showed how much the man meant to them and of course, Piers, the young sniper, was right there beside him. Were Wesker not so selfish and greedy, he would have hoped that the two would get closer. Piers was good for Chris. 

"Yea, and we´re leaving tomorrow." Jill sat up, making a decision right there on the spot. If Ada could decide she was going, then she was as well and Wesker was coming along. Because he had two people he cared about in the middle of it all. "You said you need new samples and that´s where we get them while keeping an eye on Chris in case his memories return in any way. Though we are going in secret, so no one will know. Better start packing."

"I´m not sure this is a good idea, Jill."

"Did I just hear you say that?" Her eyes narrowed into a glare as she stared at the man before standing. Walking up at him she jabbed a finger into his chest. "That´s not something the Albert Wesker I know would say!"

"Then I guess I am-"

"Don´t you even fucking dare to finish that sentence, Wesker, or I swear I will hurt you! You´ve been avoiding Chris ever since he came back and acted like a brat, not dealing with the consequences of what you did! Are you aware that he has nightmares because of you? That he´s starting to doubt you died in Africa? That he isn´t even sure if he wants you to be dead?"

The last words had the most impact on Wesker and his shocked expression betrayed as much before he pushed her hand away from where it gripped his shirt. More nightmares and pain he caused Chris because he was being selfish. How much more would the man suffer?

"What time do we leave?"

"0300 hours. Better get some sleep now unless you plan on sleeping on the plane."

\---

So much destruction everywhere and another virus was at fault. Towns were deserted, destroyed and Waiyip was a stark contrast of panicking people and loud places. Military was all over the place. Even the B.S.A.A., but the patches never said North America as Wesker read them. For now they haven´t reached Chris or his team.

When Ada reported earlier that she met with Agents Harper and Kennedy and found the ones behind all this mess, Wesker finally collected the last bits of information that showed who gave the order to sanitize Raccoon City. The one responsible for all the mess, working behind the scenes even more than Wesker himself. But even he had a weakness in the form of another person. Only that unfortunately for him, Ada Wong was interested in someone else.

The more he thought about it and made sense of the mess, the more Wesker became aware of all that happened. Simmons and Carla going different paths was a mistake. Together, they could have been grand, but the way things were now, it only enabled the B.S.A.A. to get closer.

Dressed all in black, much like his old habits, Wesker felt more comfortable with the shades on as he followed Jill to the waiting helicopter. "Chris and Piers barely escaped the building before the explosion went off and according Piers, Chris remembered everything and is now focused on killing Wong. The problem being that he could find the right one. Well, wrong one... fuck. You know whom I mean. He wants Carla who-"

"I understand, Jill. So his memories returned? All of them?" Wesker followed Jill closely behind, amused that she chose a similar outfit to how he provided to her back in Africa. The man by the helicopter looked familiar.

"Captain Valentine! Team Alpha is reportedly under attack on one of the rooftops near point Ace of Spades. Who´s that?" The man stared at Wesker, glaring for a moment since the man was not dressed like someone from the B.S.A.A., though he looked kinda familiar.

"None of your concern. Either pilot the damn thing or I will do it myself, got it?" When the pilot nodded she climbed in and Wesker was about to follow before his arm was grabbed. 

"Hey, can you even see through those things? Heh, reminds me of this nerd in Edonia who-" A moment later his arm was twisted behind his back, face pressed to the dented spot in the helicopter. "The fuc-"

"You really do enjoy talking too much for your own good. Do your job. I don´t require your help."

"It´s you!"

"How observant." Wesker released him and climbed into the helicopter, leaving the man stunned for a moment before he followed and the machine slowly lifted into the air.

"Bravo is on their way, but it´s taking a while. And how did you survive jumping out of a helicopter without a parachute?"

"I didn´t. By all means, I am considered a dead man. Now shut up." Wesker didn´t want to waste any more time. Picking up the sniper rifle he waited until the helicopter was close enough and fired the first shot at one of the J´avo eager to do the same thing apparently. Another helicopter soon appeared and he found a most disgusting creature firing a machine gun riding the side. 

"The C-virus apparently took a lot of inspiration from bugs. Gross, disgusting bugs. All the more reason to smash them." Jill focused on the other side, hair hidden beneath a cap, but Wesker refused to hide. At this point, it didn´t matter after all. Every so often he focused on the man´s face, seeing the determination in Chris´ expression, his eyes burning with emotion. Acting before thinking. He was being careless

Shooting in a moving helicopter as not an easy feat, but at least it was a challenge that he appreciated. Following Chris and his team to another set of dense buildings he watched the man stop and stare down. Once more he zoomed in on his face and followed his gaze down and his heart dropped.

"Jake.... he´s alive." Six months and the eyes still glared back, just like his own. He watched the young man say something to the young Birkin beside him, but unable to tell what, Wesker focused on the emerging J´avo instead. When the helicopter showed up again, their own had to retreat and he cursed, firing one more shot at a J´avo that got too close to Chris.

"So they made it out somehow... he really is your son."

"He´s a good kid." Wesker was proud. Even more as he watched Jake make his way up and then onto the helicopter with the disgusting J´avo and take him out with his bare hands. So much talent. It seemed like a waste for him to be a mercenary. "You should consider making him an agent, Jill."

"Already on it. Alright, survey the area, then head to the docks." That was where they were meeting with Wong who should be around as well.

\---

"What do you mean he´s gone!? He was there a while ago! I saw him! Where´s my son!?" Wesker´s shouts carried over to the man waiting outside and Jill gave up on trying to pacify him. The sheer fury in the man was a terrifying sight, but there was no change to his appearance. Only a faint red glow in his eyes that vanished quickly. Some things simply would not go away. "I have to find him-"

"Wesker, we already have people working on this. Ada herself has information and is meeting up with agent Kennedy soon. We´ll get Jake back, I promise!"

"Captain Valentine! Chris Redfield and Piers Nivans are in pursuit of Ada Wong! She´s heading this way!" The man knocked loudly, not daring to enter. If his suspicion was correct-

The door burst open and he watched Albert Wesker storm towards the helicopter with Jill in tow. Not daring to speak he followed getting into the pilot´s seat as he waited. He survived an encounter with Wesker. Twice. And instead watched the man help out others, take out J´avo and B.O.W. like it was nothing. Did this make Wesker a good guy? After all he heard.

"Go!" The helicopter rose into the air and soon Wesker had a view of the car chase, stunned at how reckless Chris was behind the wheel. His thirst for revenge was a scary thing and he should know best, but he didn´t recall seeing this kind of hatred in his eyes. For now he kept busy taking out the pursuing cars, Jill handing him more ammo as she once more took over the other side, shouting out orders at the suddenly compliant pilot.

"They entered the hangar nothing we can do from here." Jill sat back, eyes closed.

"That wasn´t Ada Wong, but Carla." Wesker reloaded the sniper rifle and kept an eye on the building. She had to come out at some point and when she would. "The woman who is responsible for Jake´s kidnapping and six months of testing him like an animal... she´s the one who caused Chris to lose his memories, who killed off his team and decided to destroy the world as petty revenge."

"Wesker-"

"She should learn from her betters. As long as people like Chris exist, the world will continue to move on and flourish."

"M-ma´am, Ada Wong... lookalike, left the building. She´s on the rooftop!"

"Move there." Though Wesker was the one to speak, the man obeyed without a word, the helicopter riding once more. Wesker stood there, sniper rifle in hand as the woman looked up from her PDA and stared straight into his eyes, shock in her face clear before she smiled. Whatever she wanted to say never came as the helicopter moved away, a J´avo with a machine gun taking aim once more.

"Jill!"

"On it!" Waiting to be in position, she took aim and fired several shots, satisfied to watch the remains of the J´avo vanish. Meanwhile Wesker watched the door to the roof open once more and Chris and Piers step out, guns aimed at Carla. And she taunted them, bringing up all the bad memories and pain Chris suffered and the blond man loathed her very existence.

And as much as Wesker wanted to let Chris have his revenge, when he saw him merely shoot the gun out of her hand he knew he wouldn´t. Taking aim once more he motioned for the pilot to bring the helicopter out. And the moment she turned around he fired, watching the red of her blood stain the purple dress she wore. Truly, not the best colour combination.

"We´re done here." Whispering he lowered the rifle and the helicopter flew away before anyone could see the ones inside. She was dead. At last. But too late. His son was gone again and-

"Ada?"

"I met with Leon and passed on the information, don´t worry, I´m sure he´ll find a way to rescue Jake and Sherry. And from what I see, Wesker took care of my little doppelganger. Should I be thankful?"

"Where are Jake and Sherry?" Jill stared at the woman as she walked through what looked like hangar. Which meant she was close...

"An underwater oil field. Should be easy enough for the B.S.A.A. to handle, right?" The image vanished and Wesker clenched his hands into fists. 

"I´m-"

"Not going. You´d let your emotions get in the way. Just, let me handle this, alright?" And he did, too exhausted to even argue. When the helicopter touched ground near the shore he stepped out and stared at the water. Somewhere out there was his son.

"S-sir?"

Looking to the terrified pilot he watched the man. Jill was behind him, shrugging briefly before calling for reports from the B.S.A.A. teams stationed in China, even getting in contact with Kennedy as she paced.

"Yes?" The one world alone seemed to have the man shaking and he stepped back, eyes staring at the dark shades the man still wore,

"Are you really... _Albert Wesker_?" 

This was going to be a long wait.


	10. Testing

"Sir, the allocated time period has elapsed. Shall we go see how it turned out?" The young girl stared at the intimidating man without any hint of fear that sometimes her colleagues showed, the clipboard in her hands firm. She was confident that this was it. The final piece they were all looking for. Wesker looked up from the computer in his lab and nodded, standing up after a moment to accompany young Marshall to the main lab. Another man passed them, nodding briefly before walking away with a bit more haste in his step.

"You know, I get that I was too young when everything happened... but this is ridiculous. You´re a good man. And if we only let past mistakes define us, then humans as a whole are screwed." She huffed, staring after the man before sticking her tongue out and hurrying after Wesker. Catching up with his long legs was not that easy.

"I did more than _a few_ mistakes, Samantha."

"But you also made more than a few good things! And call me Sam, please. Samantha sounds so effing old."

"Language, young lady." She huffed again before they entered the lab and Wesker stared at the two men and one woman, the only one without a lab coat. Jill turned around and smiled, waving, excited about the latest tests since everything looked promising.

"Come on, show me!" Nearly jumping she tried to rush the man along, which only caused Wesker to take his time. Still not used to being out in the open, the reactions from others clear as day, he was rather cautious.

"It´s a delicate process, Jill."

"Yea, yea, I know. Now hurry up!" Ever since they got their hands on the data from the lab where Jake and Sherry was kept along with all the samples the B.S.A.A. branch retrieved, Wesker worked nonstop. 

Not even a week after they returned to America, the news of what happened in the underground oil field made rounds. An unknown source provided video feed from all the cameras before their ultimate destruction and two of them were constantly playing on one screen or another. Jake Muller going against the Ustanak hand to hand, which made Wesker incredibly proud of his son. And the video of Piers Nivans giving the ultimate sacrifice for the B.S.A.A. and the world itself. 

One more, with barely audible sound, was given straight to Wesker, Ada´s signature all over it and he watched the confrontation between the man he loved as he admitted to killing Wesker and Jake. Proud and saddened were rather conflicting emotions. Chris thought he was dead, which was a good thing, but it didn´t seem that the man was moving on. And Wesker threw himself into research, determined to find a vaccine to save this damn world.

Aside from his research team, the pilot as well had to sign an agreement to keep his mouth shut about Wesker´s presence. Reassuring them all that the man was no danger to the B.S.A.A. whatsoever took a while, but it was done. Now they were all waiting for the last batch Wesker created. The dark circles beneath his eyes were well-hidden with the dark shades he once more wore and he looked paler than usually, which in itself was a feat to accomplish.

"Start the test." Sam nodded, running over to one of the computers and put in the correct sequence and all eyes were fixed on the large screen that showed what was happening in a detached room. But Wesker didn´t feel like wasting time watching from afar, instead moved to a metal panel and put a password in that lifted the heavy metal up, revealing a thick, bulletproof glass. The snarling dog was not in a good state, the rotting flesh peeling off as it spewed an odd mixture of blood and... something else. Opening the case he carried he took out the dart gun and inserted the new vaccine, then hesitated for a moment.

"This is not as concentrated as the one intended for large-scale usage, so it may take some time. None of you are to intervene. Jill, stop them if they try. Especially Samantha." The woman nodded, gun ready as Wesker left the room, his steps echoing before he made his way down a hall, going through the heavy security door before reaching the entrance to the detached room. The doors closed as he moved inside and within seconds the dog tried to attack, only to jump into nothing as Wesker moved.

"I still can´t get used to seeing that..."

"I think it´s cool." Sam countered one of the researcher´s arguments and watched as Wesker shot the vaccine, hitting the dog´s side. It whined before lunging again and he moved away. For a moment he thought it was another fluke, but then the dog twitched, whining, falling to the floor, paws rubbing at its face as thick smoke began to emanate from the body.

"Wesker?"

The man held out his hand, watching the dog whine and twitch, walking closer to inspect the animal. It shouldn´t be dead... Reaching out when the noises stopped his hand encountered warm fur, the last of the smoke drifting away, sucked into the ventilation. The dog looked emancipated, in need of several good meals, but his tail was wagging. Upon the touch it sat up, shaking, a sensory overload causing him to whine more before he moved to Wesker for more pets.

"IT WORKS!!"

The cheers from the control room were heard clearly over the intercom and Wesker ignored them completely, inspecting the dog, searching for any signs of lingering virus. Granted, a dog and a human were different, but at the same time the virus was not. He would need a blood and tissue sample from the dog, but for now, he was satisfied. Petting it once more he stood up.

"I think we finally have a vaccine. We need more tests, but bring him food and water. And maybe a blanket and some toys..." Wesker had always been fond of dogs. Even the ones Spencer kept. Sometimes he would sneak out, aware of the punishment if he would be found out, and played with them just for a little while. Maybe back then he should have noticed that he was a failure as far as the perfection part of Spencer´s intentions went. Too late for that.

_"Wesker!"_

Turning around he stumbled as something collided with his chest and fell to the ground, a rough and rather smelly tongue licking at his face, knocking his shades off. "Stop it... get off! Ugh, disgusting! Bad dog!" Not that the animal cared, happily licking at his face before climbing off the man, sniffing at the room, then at the shades he found and happily began to gnaw at them. Wesker could hear strangled noises from the control room and scoffed as he stood up, picking up the remains of his shades and left the room.

"Jill."

"Yes?"

"Delete the pictures you took, lest you want me to break the phone. The same goes for the rest of you." Quickly she shoved it into her pocket, along with the others in the room doing the same

"You´re not my boss!"

"I am their. Monitor the dog, but treat him well. I´ll need blood and tissue samples every twelve hours." Wesker washed his face at the sink, tossing the ruined shades into the trash along with paper towels.

"This is... amazing." Jill watched another researcher go into the room, cautious as he set down a bowl of dog food and water before hastily making an exit. "You basically... gave him a new life. A _rebirth_."

"We still need to monitor him the next few days before being able to consider the vaccine is complete."

"No they need to monitor him. You, need a shower and something to eat and then sleep." Jill fixed him with a hard look and Wesker, too tired to argue, just gave in, sighing as he nodded. 

When the research team saw this happen the first time they were stunned, expecting Jill to end up hurt, but soon it became clear that the two had a long history together. Jill was his friend. And soon they began to wonder if there was anything more between them. All, except for Sam. When Jill and Wesker left, one of the men watched the dog devour his food before curling up in a blanket that was brought in.

"I swear those two have to have something going on. I mean, come on."

"Nope." Sam was writing on her clipboard, checking the time to the last detail.

"What would you know? You´re just a kid..."

"Obviously more than you since you didn´t even notice that Mr. Wesker already has someone special."

"What? Whom!?" She stuck her tongue out, ignoring the man now as she continued to do her work. She saw a photo of a handsome man on Wesker´s phone once, with smiling bright eyes and dark hair and Wesker was smiling. Besides, it was women´s intuition...

\---

"This time it´s Saudi Arabia. A few B.O.W.s have been spotted in the area and a man matching Jake´s description has been seen in the area. I guess he´s still avoiding the proposal I gave him, but he hadn´t said no just yet. It´s only been a few months, give it more time." Jill opened the bottle of champagne and poured three glasses while Wesker and Ada sat down. For once, they were hanging out at her place and there was no pizza. Instead Wesker provided something more worthy of a celebration like this.

"Congratulations. The vaccine is officially in effect and the infection ratio went down seventy-five percent since its introduction. My associates are making sure it gets to even more remote places. Albert Wesker, you saved the world." Ada raised her glass of champagne with a smile and so did Jill, but Wesker hesitated.

"I still think-"

"No, stop right there. Don´t think, just be happy. Everything is going well. The B.S.A.A. is taking care of any remains of Neo-Umbrella that are around. The B.O.W. are lessening in appearance and so are the J´avo. The world is going back to how it was before and were it not for your blood as well as your son´s, we wouldn´t be here. So shut up and drink."

"What Valentine said." 

It wasn´t fair to have two women teaming up against him like this and in the end, Wesker had no choice, but to accept. Seeing his vaccine work and be spread all over the world made him feel accomplished. But now that this was done... what should he do?

"Chris keeps asking who came up with it and so are so many reporters. Nobody knows anything and keeping it a secret is annoying. By the way, he´s coming back from Japan soon." Jill saw Wesker´s lips quirk into a smile. Another nightly visit from the ghost that haunted the man´s apartment, but she stopped trying to stop him. In fact, she hoped that Chris would wake up and see him there.

It was after she saw a certain video that she should have never laid eyes on. For one, because she never wanted to see her friend and her former Captain have sex, but there was something fascinating about it. It was Wesker´s fault for leaving his phone with her while showering. She was curious. And after watching it she spent a few minutes with her head in the refrigerator, trying to cool down. As invasive as she was, that was just... hot.

"Oh, by the way, you were right." Ada took put her PDA, showing them a photo of a strange looking man. "At first it was impossible to tell, but according to the locals he has been showing up once a week, helping with ship and house repair and they paid him back with food. Although it could be anyone caught up in this mess. Until I saw this." Ada set the champagne glass down and showed them another photo that made Wesker smirk.

"I knew the young man was too stubborn to die like that. Working with the natives... I take it he is still fully coherent and in control of his new limb?"

"Seems so. Apparently they only saw it spark when he was protecting the village from raids. A word of warning though... whoever you send there better be ready to deal with him and I doubt that Chris Redfield is the man for the job." Ada sent the photos to Jill who was already analyzing them, zooming in on the man, the scarf around his neck. So often others teased him about it... and he still had it. The B.S.A.A. standard clothes were torn and worn, but she still recognized them. 

"I know exactly _who_ to send."

\---

"There are two dozes, but only one will be required. After that he needs to monitor his vital signs and watch for any changes. Since Nivans´ is a different case from the J´avo and the B.O.W. in existence, the vaccine is unique to his case." Wesker handed the small case to Jill and she nodded, pocketing it. Briefly she heard barking from the next room and grinned.

"I´ll get everything to Jake, don´t worry. How´s training going?"

"He can obey basic commands and retrieve the correct toys."

"And how many pairs of shades has he ruined?"

"...four as of last week. Samantha will be taking him home by the end of the year to be a proper family pet." Wesker turned away from Jill and focused on his computer for a moment, turning off the screens he had running.

"The vaccine is made from your blood, right? And Jake´s... so will it destroy the virus completely? Or will he be like you, still in control?" 

"I don´t know. There was no proper way to test this, Jill. But I can promise that it works. Whether he even keeps the regrown limb, I don´t know. I have high hopes for it though. Retaining the new ability his arm provides would be a mere bonus."

"Let´s hope for the best then. Jake is ready to leave and Chris is debriefing him right now. Wanna see him off?" She saw Wesker frown, the same kind of frown when she told the man that she did manage to get him to join the B.S.A.A., though for now he was more of an independent operative. But seeing that Chris had every intention of adding him to his team, they wanted to make sure he was ready. So this mission, with the main cover up being a B.O.W. cleanup, was the perfect test.

"... sure."


	11. Giving in at last

The young man´s vital signs remained unchanged throughout the entire array of tests. He was calm, accepting his fate with more grace than men twice his age and Wesker didn´t doubt he was just happy to be alive. Samantha did everything she could to set his mind at ease, walking him through the steps while the dog, the first successful result of the vaccine, followed her very step, making friends with the young sniper. Wesker watched it all from behind a monitor, once more concealing his presence and his researchers knew why. Nobody dared to speak a word.

"Just one more test and we are done! Are you excited? The vaccine worked so perfectly and it was made especially for you. Our boss put a lot of effort into it. You wouldn´t believe how many times he fell asleep working and Ms. Valentine came to yell at him." She gave a small giggle before drawing the last blood sample from the man´s right arm and putting a drop on the slide, inspecting it under her microscope.

"I´m not going to meet this boss of yours, am I?" Piers rubbed his arm, then pet the dog that was now asleep at his feet. All these tests were making him worried, afraid that any second he would lose control and destroy everything. Wesker saw his eyes flicker to his fingertips as he wiggled them.

"Nope. He´s... busy. But he´s a good man even if some people say mean things. He saved my life you know. Thinks I´m not aware, but honestly, I saw his handwriting and it matches. Cursive writing is so pretty, don´t you think?" She kept on rambling as she added another droplet of blood to a waiting mixture, swirling it around before heating it.

"You are pretty young..."

"Youngest to be ever hired. Still working on my doctorate, but I´m almost done. This is much more fun though, since I actually get to help people. The boss says I´m too smart for my own good sometimes." She replaced the slide with a new one, made from the heated mixture. "All done! Nothing, no reaction to any of the stimuli set by the boss. Which means you are all cleared for action, Mr. Nivans!"

The dog barked, waking up from his nap, wagging his tail happily as Piers put his shirt back on. Wesker was pleased.

When his son walked into the HQ with Piers Nivans, he could barely believe his eyes. The arm remained and only his eye changed, a few more scars on his body, but he was alive and well. But what took his breath away was Chris hugging the young man. He managed to give him someone back. 

Jake settled in nicely it seemed. Watching his son interact with others was a new hobby for Wesker. It was too late to be a part of his life, especially since he was still considered dead by most. He seemed especially close to Birkin´s daughter. Watching the two interact for a while made him wonder if there could be something more going on and immediately relayed his suspicions to Jill.

"Nah, you´re worrying too much. Though they would be a good match, I think she´s more like a sister to him." Her words brought some comfort to Wesker, though he wouldn´t have minded to see the two together. As long as they were happy.

The night that Jake returned with Piers Nivans, he kept an eye on his son, following him into the dark lounge and hid in the shadow to watch him. When he sat behind the piano, Wesker´s eyes widened. Did he play as well? Just like...

He did. And excellently so. Nothing could have made the man happier than knowing that Jake received talents from both parents. He was magnificent and for a while, Wesker just stood there, eyes closed as he let the music was over him. Right until Piers made his appearance and he watched the of interaction. The two seemed to be getting along better than the last time they met, before the world was saved. Good. Jake could use some good friends. Though there was something odd about the way they spoke.

_Puppy?_

What an odd nickname to give another man.

\---

"What do you mean he punched a bear? What kind of madness are you talking about?" Eager to hear about Jake´s first real mission with the rest of the Alpha team, Wesker stared at Jill as she retold the events she heard from them. A full success, of course, but the part about the bear made no sense. Especially punching one. Were there not easier ways? Guns and knives... instead his son decided to hit a bear to protect Piers from getting clawed.

The two were really getting close, especially since they began living together. The days were calmer now. The new Alpha team worked together well, even with Jake and Piers arguing and Chris having to deal with them. He seemed to enjoy it. Wesker saw him laugh more, spend time with his team, smile and even keep his mug clean more often, although his reports were still as bad as back in S.T.A.R.S. and it became Wesker´s secret pleasure to read them in spite of that. He seemed to be on the way to a normal life, forgetting about the past and moving on.

Or at least he thought so. 

When Jill told him that the two were finally going to have the long overdue talk, Wesker implanted a small device, not having the strength to be hiding in the same room as the two people in his life he loved. And although private, he felt that Jill should listen as well as they sat in her office, the door locked and Wesker pacing. Hearing what Jake really thought about him actually hurt, but he didn´t blame the boy.

"If I had known... of course I would have done everything in my power to save her." Their lives would have been so much different, but now it was a mere illusion. When Jake actually brought up Chris´ relationship with Wesker he froze, but then the man answered and his heart was breaking all over again.

"Of course I´m proud. More than he will ever know."

"Or you could... talk to him." Jill muttered, frowning as she listened to the intimate conversation between Jake and Chris. Hearing him retell everything that happened was strange. Like reading a book that she knew the ending to, only not. He left out what happened in Edonia, probably still considering that time a fever dream caused by alcohol and amnesia, but he should know better by now.

"I can´t. Jill, you know that-"

"Wesker." Something about her tone made him stop talking and look at her. "It´s been years. After all that happened... since Africa. No, since before that, since you met Chris, I think Jake deserves to hear the truth from his father. Sooner or later he will find out that you´re alive because you know somehow he will. And I think it would be better if you meet with him and talk to him before anyone else can mess that up. It´s been years and you owe him that much. You owe both him and Chris an explanation. Because as you are now, you are the Captain we all looked up to years ago and the man he loved. You made mistakes in the past, we all did, but unlike most you made up for them. You created vaccines that saved countless lives and people trust you." Walking over to Wesker she wrapped her arms around his frame, hugging him as tightly as she could. "I won´t mention this ever again, so... think about it. Consider it all and make your decision."

\---

That night he stood in Chris´ apartment, watching the man sleep, clutching at the pillow. It has been a while since he visited like this, his focus now divided between Jake, Chris and his research. But seeing the damp marks on the pillow made his chest ache with familiar pain. The knife... Chris still had it. Wesker kept it for so long to remind himself of happier times, then lost it at the manor. And Chris...

The blade felt cold as he touched it, the engraved initials still the same after all those years. The photo on the nightstand remained unchanged as well. It seemed that only Chris changed, grew older, stronger, but deep inside he was still the young man Wesker hired for his team. And his love for the man never lessened.

He made a brief stop in the man´s living room, hanging something from the hallway light, carefully handling the fragile memento and with one last kiss to the sleeping man´s brow, he made a decision.

\---

Jill spent Christmas eve at his place after the party and it was a silent affair. Ada joined them for dinner, seemingly for no reason other than to annoy Jill, but Wesker was thankful. When he told Jill that he made a decision to speak to Jake, she was delighted, tempted to arrange a meeting that very night before he stopped her. That could wait for another evening.

Not too long though. A bar seemed like a neutral enough place and when Wesker arrived, Jake wasn´t there yet. And he felt scared. Ordering a drink he sat in a dark corner, shades in place and he wasn´t sure how much time had passed before the door opened and his son stepped inside. It was one thing to watch him from afar, but to actually see him like this and be about to speak to him for the first time in his life? Wesker knew this wouldn´t end well.

"Last thing I heard you took a fucking rocket to the face while bathing in lava. So tell me, how the fuck are you still alive, _Wesker_?"

The first thing his son ever said to him and it was this of all things. He wasn´t surprised at all. Finishing the glass of whiskey he sighed and began to talk. About how he survived. About Jake´s mother. About Chris. His throat felt sore, but he still left out details about the past couple of years or what he had done after finding out about Jake. There was no need for that. And maybe a part of him was hoping that they could meet and talk again.

Jake didn´t attack him once, which he found surprising. And the more he stared at the young man, the more he saw the similarities between them and between him and his mother. It was remarkable. Wesker expected an angry reaction sooner or later, but instead the other remained oddly calm. Perhaps living with that young sniper was good influence.

A week. An ultimatum to talk to Chris before Jake would do the talking with or without Wesker. They were really alike. Perhaps it was time after all. Sending a message to Jake´s phone he hoped that eventually his own would light up with a call from the other one day. And though he knew, Wesker could not resist asking him about the piano, just to see if he would answer truthfully.

_He did._

But then he mentioned something interesting, making Wesker´s interest grow some more. The way Jake´s eyes flickered for a moment made it seem like the two were more than merely co-workers or roommates, but he might be reading too much into it. Extending his hand as they stood up he stared at his son and when Jake hesitated he did not blame him. But then he shook it and left, returning to Piers. Wesker would need to ask Jill about their relationship again.

\---

Perhaps he should have gone home to contemplate the first meeting with his son, but Jake´s words echoed in his mind for the longest time. Wesker wasn´t thinking as he walked and before he realized it he stood in front of the B.S.A.A. headquarters. It was time. Reaching the man´s office took only seconds for the superhuman man and soon he stood there, sighing as he saw the coffee mug on the table and without any hesitation placed a coaster under it. Chris was not here, but he would return soon since he made another mug. Working late again...

The familiar footsteps made him freeze and he considered fleeing, but Wesker was tired of running. Tired of hiding in the shadows and watching those he cared about from a distance, unable to stand beside him at least once more. Even if this was the last time he would get to be near Chris, he made his decision.

"Your desk was always covered in circles from your mugs. You should lead by example, Christopher."

"You´re _dead_." And yet, Chris didn´t sound convinced at all.

"I assure you I am not, though I don´t doubt you wish it were otherwise. In a way, I have you to thank for my current condition. That condition being... I guess you could say I am healed. Recovered from the virus. Thanks to Jill and Ms. Wong. Although I would not recommend being forced to spend time alone with both of them at once. It´s not beneficial for one´s health." They were driving him crazy on their own, yet together? Almost unbearable.

"Wesker, you´re dead. I killed you. You were in a volcano when I shot you with a rocket and you died!" Oh, how could he have forgotten that? The pain haunted him even now, nightmares often surfacing after a hard day and forever would haunt his dreams. Slowly standing up he walked around the desk, just enough to face Chris properly with nothing standing between them.

"Yes, you did do that, but it was not enough to kill me. However, it killed something else. I believe Jill made a detailed report to give to you soon, but someone else told me that I owe you more than just an explanation and an apology. With the time limit I was given and my current work, I figured I could do it tonight." Yet it seemed to have been a mistake as Chris moved to pick up his gun. If he wanted to shoot him, so be it The bullet might not kill him, but it would definitely deliver the message. Wesker glanced to the man´s wrist, eyes hidden by his dark shades and with some small pleasure noticed the watch he was wearing.

"I don´t want your excuses!"

"Not excuses, Christopher. Explanations and an apology. There is no excuse that would be able to make up for what I have done." He glanced at the gun again, but didn´t move from the spot, only gave a faint nod. "You can shoot if you want to. The remains of the virus would still be able to heal me, even if it would take longer. You deserve it. So please, do go ahead."

"Stop fucking around!" He watched the man´s finger twitch over the trigger and expected the pain of a bullet wound in his chest, but instead there was silence before the gun slowly lowered, those bright eyes wide "It was you..." Barely a whisper and the eyes looked to the knife that sat on his desk. "At my apartment, that was you!"

"Yes." There was no point denying that part of what he had done.

"Why? Why do you keep haunting me? Why can´t you just leave me alone and find someone else to torment!? Why does it have to be me!?" The pain in Chris´ voice tore at his heart. How much anguish had he caused the man?

"Because I wanted to see you. Though it was not my choice to come here. Jake told me, because he said I owed you this much at least. Of course, the boy was right." He owed the man more than just an explanation and an apology, but he could never make up for that.

"... you met Jake?"

"Jill arranged for it." The shock of hearing the woman being responsible for all this seemed to hit him hard as Chris sank into his chair and buried his face in his hands. This wasn´t going as Wesker planned... but it was done.

"Why?"

"You should know the answer to that by now."

"Fine then. Explain. Explain fucking everything and then give me a reason not to put a bullet in you. I´m surprised Jake didn´t." If he were to be perfectly honest, Wesker was surprised as well. For the second time in one night he retold the same story, only this time with details only Chris would know, but made sure to ignore the more intimate details of their meetings, whether prior to the volcano or after it. His throat was staring to hurt from talking too much in one day.

"So all the information we had... Edonia and China... Germany and everywhere else-"

"Yes, I asked Jill to pass that information along to you. Derek Simmons could have been a great man were he not so blinded by love. But I guess, love is the downfall of all of us." He would know best, though it was love that allowed him to keep his sanity in times of greatest need. "It is rather late. You should head home and get some rest, Christopher. And don´t worry. Tonight was my last visit. I intend to stay away and continue atoning in my own way."

"Why were you coming to my place? I thought the place was being haunted by a ghost! Though I guess I wasn´t that far off. But you... do you know how creepy it is to know you watched me sleep? That you were there and didn´t say a word? How long have you been even doing that?" Wesker froze for a moment, ashamed to admit how long he had been doing this. Perhaps... hiding some of the truth might be helpful after all. 

"A few months. Ever since I decided to take up residence in America once more. At first I thought I could talk to you, but... I was a coward. Were it not for Jake, I would not be here right now."

"He looks just like you. Almost shot me when I told him that I was the one to kill you." Why did Chris sound so proud? Wesker watched their first meeting and then the confession of killing Wesker that took place six months later. But there was nothing more to be said. They were done. Maybe now Chris could find some resemblance to peace.

"My contact will be through Jill only from now on, so you need not worry about me appearing again. I do believe there are still more than enough people out there willing to kill me."

"Wait!" There was a bump, probably Chris hitting the desk and Wesker didn´t doubt that it hurt. But before he could leave a hand grabbed onto his jacket and refused to let go. "You... take off those shades."

"I would rather not."

"It wasn´t a request, Wesker." There was that tone. The same tone that he came to admire in Chris long ago.

"I do not recall working under you, Christopher. In fact, as I recall, you were the one working under me. In more ways than one." Oh, how he still adored to see those eyes widen. And though he tried not to, making him recall those memories made the man smile.

"I guess I can honour this one request, seeing as this is our last meeting."


	12. Heat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Office sex.

Perhaps he should have turned around and left when he had the chance to, but when Chris actually touched him to keep him back, Wesker knew he had lost. What was it about the man that he could always get to him so easily? That he always knew what to do or what to say to Wesker to get his attention? He had always been his best man and the main reason all his plans failed. And he was thankful for that resilience. Chris Redfield has been special to him.

Taking his shades off at last he could hear the soft gasp as Chris stared at him, having to look up slightly to meet his gaze as the shorter man stared straight into his eyes. The last time he had seen them, they were blue as well, but Chris blocked that part of the memory. Or at least until now. Recognition filled the expressive gaze and Chris reached into his pocket, pulling out a worn piece of paper.

"Don´t lie to me and tell me that this... that months ago it wasn´t you. It wasn´t just a dream or a pretender or anything. It was you." Wesker wanted to deny it, but seeing the words he wrote down months ago during Chris´ amnesia rendered him unable to do so.

"I had hopes that seeing me would jog your memory, but it seemed not even knowing my name and face helped. What I did... I shouldn´t have. Instead-" A hand clasped over his mouth to stop what he wanted to say next and Chris was glaring now, shaking his head. That week, knowing that he wasn´t going crazy, that it wasn´t his imagination or a dream, changed everything.

"Don´t you fucking dare to finish that sentence, Wesker." Again that commanding tone and after the older man nodded, Chris pulled his hand away, still staring at him. He looked... just like the Wesker he remembered. Not the one in Africa, not the one constantly getting in the way, but the Captain who nagged him about reports and kissed him in his office so long ago. "How much do you remember... of what happened?"

"Everything. From when Spencer worked on his Project W to this moment." If he felt he had no evidence, now, then this was it. Whatever was going on in Chris´ mind that very moment didn´t reflect nearly as clearly in his eyes as he continued to just stare at the man, not letting go of him still and Wesker knew he should leave. He had to. Before he would add to the regret he felt-

"Look up." And after a moment he did, seeing something hanging off the ceiling in the dark. It wasn´t hard to tell what it was, the red ribbon familiar as he recognized the mistletoe that Jill doubtlessly hung there.

"Oh..." No, this wasn´t happening. He had to get away before it was too late! "If that is-" He never got to finish the sentence.

Chris´ warm lips pressed against his own and he had no will to fight something like this, instead returned the kiss immediately as his back met the wall, the other man´s body pressing effectively against him and trapping him. Granted, even with Chris´ bulked up frame, Wesker was stronger and could easily free himself, but he didn´t even want to consider that a viable option. The kiss quickly became passionate, untold feelings pouring into the embrace and before it was even over, Wesker knew he had lost. He always lost to Chris in one way or another, but this one, this was the best one yet.

His arms came to rest around the younger man´s waist, pulling him closer still as they kissed. With everything out in the open it felt different. Chris knowing who he was, why he was alive, what he had done, everything was finally said and still the man was... Honestly, he would never be able to stay away from the one he loved so much. When air became a necessity he stared at the other, fascinated by the way his eyes shone even in the dark office. Chris always was special. The hero this world would never deserve, but needed more than anything. The hero Wesker needed.

Lips connecting once more he gave in at last, unable to fight with his weakened resolve. Instead he held him tighter, one hand sliding lower to grope at that amazing rear. Those combat pants never did it justice. The kiss was maddening. So much different from all those they shared before and yet, amazing and leaving Wesker wanton.

"Don´t go." The faintest of whispers and Wesker pulled away from the kiss to stare at the man once more to stare into his eyes and the sight of the unshed tears broke his heart. So much pain and suffering, so many nightmares and losses he caused this man and still he said something like this? He would never be able to deny Chris anything at this rate. "Don´t you fucking dare to walk out the door and leave me... _Captain_."

He was tired of running, tired of hiding and watching from afar, hoping to be forgotten, yet hoping to be remembered at the same time. All Wesker wanted was... this. This moment, over and over again. His embrace tightened and he leaned in once more.

"I won´t." Lips brushing over the other´s with every whispered word, Wesker stared into his eyes, thumbs brushing beneath the dark lashes to capture the tars before they could fall. "I won´t leave you again, Christopher." The following kiss took his breath away as the younger man took full control, pinning him to the wall once more before allowing Wesker to regain some control of his movement. If only it would end merely in heated kisses like this, but they both knew something like that was impossible. Not after waiting so long.

It took mere seconds for Wesker to have Chris against the desk and there was not a sound of protest from the other man, even as he was lifted up onto it and Wesker stood between his legs, hands roaming over his body, tugging on the shirt that cling to his torso, defining every muscle, every curve. And even though Wesker loved the way his new Pointman used to fit into his arms, he was rather fond of this new Chris as well. The sheer power was too arousing for the man.

Fingers were clumsily trying to deal with the buttons of his shirt, reminding Wesker of what happened months ago. The clothes were in the way. He wanted to see Chris, touch him all over and this simply wouldn´t do. Although reluctant, Wesker pulled away from the kiss and removed his jacket with ease, tossing it in the direction of the other´s chair before his hands deftly took care of his shirt. So many battles and fights made their mark on Chris´ body and his fingers brushed over each and every one of them he could find. Later, his lips would follow the same path.

When his shirt came undone, Chris did not hesitate to touch him, his fingers brushing over familiar spots that always made Wesker react just a bit more. He still knew all of them... but the digits lingered on the new marks, the few scars the lava left behind and his body wasn´t able to heal. Honestly, considering he bathed in it, a few pale scars were not a bad thing to have. His own fingers brushed over a more recent mark, near the man´s hip and he stared at Chris.

"How badly did it hurt?"

"I had worse." Of course he had and Wesker hated that undeniable fact. But then smiling lips were on his own and his anger over the past mistakes was gone as he kissed back, feeling the younger man´s hands now move lower, working on his belt, tugging and pulling and it was almost too much like what he had done before. "Don´t wear it again," he heard the other complain when the belt buckle finally gave and Wesker briefly considered taking a leaf out of Jake´s book and trying suspenders. Then again, he did like his own style...

His own hands worked much more efficiently, the gloves having ended up on the floor by now as Wesker undid Chris´ pants and tugged them off, revealing his tented briefs. One glance and the blond was chuckling, amused as his lips pressed a loving kiss to the other´s cheek. "Chris... you´re really something else." He always did have something for cute underwear and now it was no different.

But even the cute panda underwear had to go because Wesker wanted to see the man. Lifting him off the desk with ease he took them off, discarding them on the floor before gazing at the man he loved in his full, naked glory. No words could ever suffice to describe the man, that much was clear. Lips bruised from the force of their kisses, cheeks flushed as the man breathed and stared, his erection proudly standing between powerful thighs. He was nothing short of perfect.

"Stop staring and fuc-" Wesker cut him off before he could finish, lips claiming the younger man´s as his hands shamelessly roamed his naked frame. Hands worked on his pants once more and he worried about how deftly he managed to deal with the button and zipper, but perhaps compared to his belt it was nothing after all. But soon, another problem presented itself.

"I don´t really have anything-" 

"Second drawer." Now this caused a pale eyebrow to rise in surprise before a smirk curled on his lips. His pants came undone and a second later a strong hand curled around his length and squeezed, drawing a strangled moan from his throat. Reaching the drawer actually took a moment, body pressing into the other man´s before he managed to retrieve what turned out to be a jar of petroleum jelly. And a rather used one as well. His questions could wait.

Lips were once more on his own, Chris body radiating heat and pure need as Wesker pushed him back on the desk, papers scattering on the floor and neither man cared at all as Wesker admired the view. And for a moment he was reminded of the way Chris laid on the bed months ago, a smile on his face and body ready to be claimed. Did he remember what Wesker did back then, too? Perhaps he should take another photo to remind him.

But he was too busy to bother with that right now, instead he kissed him, one slick finger pushing inside his frame with surprising ease. Immediately he was worried, but it took only a second to remind him who this man was. There could not be anyone else, but that still left him with some questions. "Something you want to tell me, Christopher?"

He watched the brunet´s cheeks flush a dark red and knew that the man would never admit it to directly. A small part of him felt annoyed that he missed the show during his nightly visits. "Shut up... it´s your fault." And Wesker gladly accepted the blame and more, kissing him again as he pushed another finger inside his frame. 

The volcano had _nothing_ on Chris.

Soft moans reached his ears as he prepared the man, still unwilling to take any chances at hurting him as he teased the spot inside him instead, drawing more beautiful moans from the other. "Do it already!" So demanding and impatient. Wesker pressed the tips of his fingers to the bundle of nerves inside the man, causing him to gasp and whimper for more.

"Do what? I´m afraid you´ll have to be a bit more specific." There would never come a day when he would tire of teasing him. The angry stare from the man lost all effect when Wesker thrust his fingers in once more, hitting the same spot that caused the man´s member to twitch, a drop of precome spilling from the head.

"Fuck me!" Well, that was rather direct. Unable to tease him after Chris voiced exactly what he wanted, Wesker removed his hand, taking one more second to appreciate the view he had before the head of his own length eagerly pressed to the man´s entrance and he pushed inside. There was a breathless _yes_ on Chris´ lips as he slowly pushed inside him at last and he felt the other tense as he refused to go faster, wanting to savour this moment.

"F-fuck... did it get bigger?" Now there was a compliment if he ever heard one. Their lips connected once more, Wesker´s tongue stroking the younger man´s as he remained still for the longest time and his hands took to caressing the powerful body beneath him before settling on his hips. Establishing a firm grip he finally began to move before Chris could voice his need again and the familiarity of it all made him groan.

When Chris arched his back off the desk it was a sight too erotic for words, prompting Wesker to actually move faster, thrust just a bit harder to grant him the pleasure he sought and pressed their bodies closer together. This sweet madness was like their entire relationship and both men were aware, yet neither was willing to let go. Ever.

Chris´ arms wrapped around his shoulders, blunt nails once more digging into his skin as he moved and shook the entire desk, more papers littering the floor. At least this way they wouldn´t get messy. Their lips remained locked, all sounds drowning in the embrace as Wesker felt the other man´s length rub against his abdomen, more of the clear liquid spilling and smearing over the skin. Wesker knew exactly how to move, which angle to take to drive Chris into a frenzy of see him beg for more. 

His hands gripped the man´s hips hard enough to bruise once more and later he would apologetically kiss the marks he had left. When they parted to breathe, Wesker stared into those expressive eyes and felt them stare right back, straight into his very core. It felt like a lifetime had passed since the first time he realized that he was actually in love with his Pointman and this very moment.

The force only increased as the pleasure did and the pinnacle came unexpectedly. Chris´s nails slid down his back, leaving red welts against the pale skin as he suddenly came and Wesker could only thrust once more before the walls clamped down on his member and he released inside the man. A soft whine, a demand of sorts, came from Chris and Wesker softly kissed him, not giving a damn about the mess between their bodies as he savoured the closeness, only pulling away to breathe once more.

Slowly he slid out of the man and reached for the tissues, gently cleaning him up while the other composed himself. His shirt was a mess, the black material definitely showing evidence of what happened and he could not care less. The worst was taken care of with the tissues and he could just toss it later. Or wash it and keep it as a memento. What a sentimental fool he was after all these years.

"Don´t leave..." The voice was soft, once more laced with tears and Wesker looked up, watching Chris seat himself on the desk, warm yes staring into his own. Leaning in to gently kiss him, he knew he would never deny the man anything.

"I´m not leaving you, Christopher, I promise. But we should get you someplace more comfortable and soon, as you look ready to fall asleep." He was already before Wesker decided to come by, the coffee only evidence of that, but after this he looked downright exhausted. Pressing one more sweet kiss to his lips he helped him off the desk, fixing his clothes as he watched Chris pick up the discarded panda underwear. "I´m pleased to see that some things never changed," he teased the man as his ass was once more covered.

A lot still remains, details of years passed to divulge, but neither was willing to ruin the afterglow just yet. Once Chris pulled his shirt back on and walked to Wesker he tugged the man into another kiss, unable to have enough just yet. "My place is not far, but you already know that." Wesker was only too aware of that. How often had he visited? He lost count at this point.

"Mine is closer." And he wanted Chris in his bed, in his arms. Ignoring the fact that both Jill and Ada enjoyed showing up unexpected, Wesker watched the man try to clean his shirt once more, though he didn´t look that sorry to see the mess he was responsible for.

"Let´s go then." Wesker smiled at the wager tone as he retrieved his jacket, watching the other man do the same before he took his gun as well. Then the man picked up the knife, his smile bright and happy as he held it out to Wesker "I can finally give this back to you. And don´t you fucking dare say no. I had it made for you and only for you, Wesker."

He wanted to protest, claim that he had no need for a knife even now, his abilities stronger, but instead he took it and unsheathed the blade, staring at the inscription. It was so long ago, but the memory was still perfect in his mind. He would never forget Chris´ face when he kissed him the first time. And then so boldly the man took charge of the next kiss, surprising Wesker once again. He always had a talent to do that.

"Christmas years ago, this was your present to me. I still remember the looks we received after leaving the office. You didn´t manage to properly button your shirt." Oh, they had to have known by then, at least the one responsible for the mistletoe did for sure and Wesker still recalled how she teased him about the missing tie.

"And you didn´t say anything until Jill pointed it out." Wesker´s eyes never left the other as he locked up his office for the night, something that never stopped Jill before and stood beside him again. "I still have the watch you know. It... still works perfectly."

"Of course. I have excellent taste in everything. Be it watches or my Pointman." And he took pride in that. Only the best was good enough, be it his team or his lovers.

Wesker felt strange walking through the B.S.A.A. lobby like this, but the lights were off and the night guard off somewhere else. No one else was around as they made their way to the exit. Shades back on, purely out of habit by now, Wesker walked to Chris´ car, pleasantly noticing that it was kept in a neat state and gave him quick direction that would never be forgotten. The drive was a quick one, the night roads empty and so was the parking lot where Chris pulled up, somewhat surprised that he never noticed the _Reserved for A. Wesker_ plate in the spot. Not that the man needed a car now...

The elevator ride didn´t take long, thankfully, because the moment Wesker unlocked the door (relieved to find his apartment empty), Chris pinned him to a wall again, lips ravishing his own, eager hands tugging on his jacket. Their night was far from over.

"Bedroom?"

"Second door on the right." The younger man pulled away with a smile that was far from coy and took off his boots, stripping down on the way there. And Wesker watched him, following, picking up the discarded clothing out of habit. How many times had he done this in the past? He still ended up setting them on a chair the moment he saw Chris, naked and gorgeous, in the middle of his bed. Leaning against the doorway he took the shades off and just took in the sight. 

He had dreams like this, the more pleasant ones that left him wanting more and feeling lonely in the morning. But this was far from a dream. Because a dream never felt this strong and this hot, never left him with red marks on his back and a mess on his body. The intensity could never compare.

"What are you looking at? Get over here and kiss me."

Wesker did so without another word.


	13. Lukewarm coffee is not bad

That night, Wesker was afraid to sleep. For about an hour now he just watched the man in his arms slumber, a peaceful expression on his face, one that hasn´t been there all those time he came to visit him in the depth of a night. He feared falling asleep and waking up alone, finding out that all this was just another vivid dream. His hold on Chris tightened after a moment and he buried his face in the dark hair, feeling the other´s powerful heartbeat against his chest.

"Wesker... you´re thinking too loud... sleep." The sleepy voice startled him mid-thought and Chris didn´t even open his eyes, only squeezed the other man with his powerful arms. And Wesker complied. There was simply no way this could be a mere dream. And he couldn´t recall a time where he slept better.

Neither man was aware that morning came, or that the sun was steadily rising. With the curtains drawn the bedroom was bathed in darkness as they slept, completely missing the sound of a key in the front door.

Jill never bothered to knock since she had her own key. Granted, often she came at the same time that Wesker was in the shower but each time the man wore a towel around his waist. Even if neither would ever consider something more than their renewed friendship, she appreciated the eye candy. It would be a sin not to. Noticing a pair of boots near the door she wondered if Wesker got a new pair and missed the coat she would have recognized that hung beside the door.

Instead she made her way to the kitchen, setting he box of donuts on the counter and tossed her jacket over the back of a chair as she started on some coffee. Eager to hear how the man´s meeting with Jake went, she wasn´t willing to wait for him to show up at her office. And since there was no sound in the apartment she figured he was still asleep. Pouring two mugs of coffee she added a bit of milk to Wesker´s and sugar to her own before deciding he slept long enough and made her way to the bedroom.

It was dark inside, but her eyes immediately focused on the large bed and the fact that there were two figures. Wesker was peacefully asleep, arm protectively thrown over the other man. A man she had known for years. There was no mistaking what happened, either, the bottle of lubricant evidence enough if she had any doubts. 

_"Chris!?"_

Wesker grunted, pulling the man closer as he shifted in his arms and ignored the shocked voice, not yet aware of what was happening. His lover on the other hand was immediately awake, rubbing his eyes as he sat up after a moment, arms still wrapped around his waist.

"Hey, Jill. What are you doing here?" Oblivious, still mostly asleep, he stretched, yawning wide while the covers fell away from his chest and pooled around his waist, revealing dozens of marks all over his torso.

"What-...I should be the one-...what are you two-...Wesker! Wake the fuck up right now!" Chris yawned again as Wesker beside him grunted and slowly sat up. But unlike with Chris, realization dawned on him quickly and the situation was rather obvious. He had the grace to look embarrassed at least, but there was a certain smugness about it that no one else could pull off.

"I assure you I am awake. Now, please leave the room as neither of us is dressed. And please, make another coffee for Christopher." 

Yea-no fucking way I´m going anywhere! What happened!? I set you up to talk to Jake and you-"

"Jake gave me an ultimatum to talk to Christopher. And I did."

"With your dick?" Chris cringed before muttering something about a shower and looked around, trying to find his underwear, unwilling to show her more than she could already see, but Wesker had no such problem. Slowly he rose from the bed in all his naked glory and two pairs of eyes fixed on it immediately. Walking over to Jill he gently pushed her out of the room.

"I will explain everything once we make ourselves presentable. I promise. Now, please, give us a moment."

"... I swear if you two have shower sex I will hurt you." Muttering she turned around and stomped off, grabbing a donut to pacify her anger. The bedroom door closed and as she started to make another mug of coffee she found herself smiling. Sure, a part of her was still upset, but after so long, everything seemed to be going so well. And she was curious to hear Wesker explain that.

_-In the bedroom-_

"She knows!" Chris´ eyes were wide as he stood up, staring at the nude Wesker who was calmly checking his phone. No missed calls or texts, so this was a surprise visit from her.

"She has known long before this, Christopher. I think that it was mere shock from seeing us like this after so long. After all, it was Jill who told me so many times to just talk to you and explain." Walking to the man he pulled him close, pressing a warm kiss to his forehead. "Everything´s going to be fine. Now come, we need to clean up and I should have something that will fit you, considering your clothes are a mess."

"And whose fault is that?" Chris pulled away, giving the older man a happy smile before grabbing his hand to drag him to the bathroom. Just a quick shower, nothing more...

"Yours for tempting me, of course."

"You´re impossible!" Yet Chris didn´t sound upset at all. Closing the bathroom door, Wesker smiled and allowed himself to be pulled into the shower.

"Thank you."

_-Fifteen minutes later-_

The two finally emerged, dressed in clean clothes and Chris looking way too happy while Wesker smoothed his hair back. Jill kept glaring still, having heard the shower noises all the way to the living room and just turned the news up louder. 

"Donuts! Jill, you´re the best!" Chris rushed to the box, content to stuff his face before seeing the coffee. Even lukewarm it was good and Wesker watched on in amusement. For a few seconds it felt like being back at the police station in Raccoon City, with Jill bringing in a box of donuts just like this, Chris always the first to grab one, always getting powdered sugar on his uniform.

"Alright. Start explaining." Jill crossed her arms over her chest and stared at the two and at least Chris had the grace to look guilty, though the effect was lessened by the fact that a man like him managed to get strawberry glaze all over his mouth.

Oddly enough, explaining what happened didn´t take too long as Wesker left out the more intimate details, but he made sure to mention that the mistletoe someone hung in Chris´ office was to blame for the first kiss in a long time. Chris remained silent the whole time until it got to the kiss and made sure that Jill knew that he was the one to do it, to beg Wesker not to leave. To remember everything at last, including the week with Wesker from his amnesiac time.

"You´ve been telling me for so long to talk to Christopher, so I finally did. I had... nothing to lose. The vaccine works, the research team is doing excellent work even without my guidance and my son is happy and working for the B.S.A.A., so all that remained was talking to the one person who was on my mind for most of my life. Although I hadn´t anticipated this result..." He meant to finally release Chris from the nightmare of his own existence, but instead... here they were.

"So what does this mean? Are you two back to dating?" Unsure how to answer, Wesker looked to Chris who seemed to contemplate this question for a moment. Their time together before was brief, but blissful. All the times after that were strange. They never had the time to properly date.

"I do believe I have to ask Christopher out on a date. Which, bearing in mind that I am still considered dead by most, it might not be easy." A date, being able to spend time with Chris, catch up on everything that happened and just be happy sounded like a dream romance.

"Then stop being dead. You have a team of researchers, your son, people who know you are alive and you did good work! I mean the vaccine is a full success! You even managed to bring Piers back!" Seeing Chris´ shocked face she looked from one man to another. "You haven´t told him about it?"

"I didn´t think it was important as long as it was done." Wesker actually looked uncomfortable, which was a first.

"You did all that? The vaccine... and saving Piers? Jill said that the vaccine was made specifically to him and tested on a similar case, so all of that was you? How? When?" Now the man looked guilty and shifted in the chair while Chris stared.

"I have been working on a vaccine since the outbreak began over a year ago. But I was lacking something. Later it turned out that Jake was the missing piece. Once I had the six months of testing and research as well as samples in my hands, a vaccine was mere steps away. After we had success with the testing it was spread out as the cure and worked, though the sniper was a unique case and I had to take things a step further. Testing took a while as the experiments often left me exhausted." He shrugged briefly, sipping his new, hot coffee while the information sank in.

"You were... testing it on yourself?" The shock still hasn´t left Chris´ voice.

"Of course. I became the perfect test subject for the type of virus he had. Which is the reason why he managed to retain his re-grown limb without the side-effects." Leaning back he watched Chris´ reaction to this news, aware that they had been keeping some things from Chris, but he had other matters to worry about anyway.

"When... did you start?"

"My approximation would be some two years ago, when I was trying to find a solution to bring Jill´s old hair colour back. Unfortunately, that became impossible and I failed, but later I discovered a serum that destroyed the mutated virus that was spreading in a few places. I do believe one of your men had a sister affected by it and sought employment." Samantha was a smart girl, too.

"You mean Cole? So when he told us-hold on! He said a serum was delivered with a brief note how to use it and signed with initials... he never said what they were." Jill smiled as Chris realized just how long Wesker was fighting the good fight.

" _A.W._ Albert Wesker. I made him sign it and all the others. And by the way, I like being blond I think I look fantastic."

"I like blonds." Chris commented softly, causing Wesker to look away for a moment. This situation alone felt somewhat bizarre, sitting here like this, eating donuts and enjoying coffee while two members of his old team were sitting right there with him, one of them having spent the night in his arms.

"So, what do we do now?" Jill leaned forward, looking from one man to another, no longer content with letting Wesker continue hiding. He had done more than enough to atone for any past sins and though she knew he would disagree, there should be no more hiding.

"Now you two go to work and I... perhaps later, I could show Christopher the laboratory. If he finds the time considering we left the office in a rather messy state last night."

"I would like that. And maybe over time, things will get easier and you can wander the halls freely, right?" Even if it would take more time. Wesker saved the world and barely anyone was aware of it. Standing up he walked up to the man and pulled him into a kiss, which left Jill to stare elsewhere for a moment. Honestly, she wanted to let them hear it for the shock they have given her, but maybe they have suffered enough. Although...

"So, what did Chris say about that hot video you have?"

Maybe just a bit more wouldn´t hurt.

\---

It took a while to pacify Chris after he found out about the little sex video Wesker took months ago, but once the man promised that no one aside from Jill (who was snooping around as always) saw it, he calmed down. Now they headed down to the research lab, Chris dressed in his usual B.S.A.A. clothes once more since he planned to head to the training room afterwards. When the door slid open, the first thing he saw was a man in a white coat chasing after a dog.

"What-"

"Our first successful test subject. Although the DNA matrix was different, the C-virus didn´t differentiate and adapted, so it was optimal. His training is still in progress though." Wesker watched the dog jump behind a table, tail wagging as the researcher tried to retrieve whatever was in his mouth. 

"Samantha insisted on keeping him as a mascot, though she will be taking him home soon." Wesker lead the younger man inside, then gave a sharp whistle and stared directly at the dog. "Heel." The dog whined before walking over, sitting at the man´s feet. "Give." Kneeling down he held out his hand and when the glasses case was let go of, made a face. So much slobber. "Good dog. Now, stop stealing glasses and shades."

"You know that never works, Mr. Wesker. He just likes them because they were his first toy thanks to you." Wesker gave the glasses case to the researcher as a young girl walked from the adjoining room, her eyes fixed on her boss before falling to the man by his side. The loud noise she let out made the men wince and Wesker went to wash his hand.

"It´s you!" The dog was excited once more, barking, jumping around and she was nearly as well. "It´s really you! Wow, I thought-never mind, not important!"

"Uh, hi? Wesker? What´s going-"

"You´re his boyfriend!" Chris froze, staring at her before slowly looking to the silent blond who was scrubbing his hand clean for no reason other than to avoid looking at them. "He had your photo on his phone for as long as I can remember. I think it´s sweet. Why didn´t you visit earlier though? Is it because people were saying mean things about Mr. Wesker?"

"Samantha-"

"Or were you too busy? You don´t look like a scientist... oh, are you with the B.S.A.A.?" Excited she ran up to him, hand touching the patch on his shoulder when she saw the red mark on his neck. And another right beside it. She might be young, but she was definitely not stupid. "Are those real? Touching his arm she squeezed, eyes wide when she saw that the muscle there was definitely real.

"Samantha, please." Wesker finally finished washing his hand and sighed, taking the shades off for now and placed them into his pocket for protection. "This man is Christopher Redfield, one of the founders of the B.S.A.A. and-"

"You mean _THE_ Chris Redfield? My big brother is on your team then! Cole!" Of course she knew about him. By now the rest of the team gathered around, watching the exchange curiously. Of course they knew who the man was as well. But why was he here? "You´re dating Chris Redfield!"

"I guess I am." Hearing it shouted like that sounded ridiculous and childish. So why did he love it so? Seeing the grin on the man´s face wasn´t helping things either. When Chris walked up to him and pulled him into a mostly innocent kiss in front of everyone, Wesker was left positively shocked. Since when was he this bold in front of other people?

"Yep, definitely dating. So how about you give me a tour of this place and explain everything sciency in a dumbed-down version? I doubt Wesker would make it as much fun. And you can tell me what it´s like working with him and what you all were up to." Looking to the blond man he smirked. "And I mean all the embarrassing stuff he would never admit to."

"I would love to!"

Chris knelt down to pet the dog before it ran off to try and jump at Wesker, seemingly trying to steal the shades from his pocket. "Lunch at my office later?"

"Of course."


	14. No more secrets

Though Chris intended to have a private lunch with Wesker in his office, something else came up that Jill wouldn´t let go. So when they were finally in her office, the pizza smelling up the place, Wesker was not happy at all. Neither was Chris, but the only one amused seemed to be Ada, especially during Piers´ outburst as he found out what the vaccine that saved his life consisted of. Yet Jake displayed a talent for calming him down and that raised the man´s interest in the two.

Of course, the mystery was revealed when Chris saw a mark on Piers´ neck, having several of his own that were similar in appearance. So the two were an item? Interesting. At least Jake had good taste. Though for a while Wesker assumed that Birkin´s daughter had her sights set on the man. The meeting could have gone far worse, he decided as they left and his focus was once more on Chris. He looked content with how things turned out and that was all that mattered right now.

That night they talked a lot more. Not just about the past, but also the present. How Piers and Jake seemed to work so well together and were close. How well the man played the piano and had the whole department amazed during the Christmas party. And Wesker told Chris all about his mother, showing him the old photograph he had and how they met, making sure to mention the point where he first noticed the Air Force ace. 

He also told him later about seeing their first encounter in Edonia and Chris admitted that he saw Wesker in the young man and that had him confused until his memory was lost. Recalling the week of bliss though, Wesker had the grace to feel ashamed for being so selfish, even though Chris reassured him that there was nothing about it to regret. He enjoyed every moment and the memory afterwards kept him going. He still had the piece of paper the man wrote back then.

The next morning, no one woke them up or interrupted and for a while Chris was tempted to call Jill and tell her that he was taking a day off, but that would raise questions among his men. Chris Redfield never took a personal day. Ever. Even when he caught a cold they found him huddled in a thick blanket behind piles of papers in his office, sniffing into a bunch of tissues.

They spent most evenings at Wesker´s apartment, catching up on lost time while during the day they were both busy leading their teams. Wesker as a researcher, now endlessly teased by the young girl about Chris, and Chris training with Alpha and teased by Jill. At least she didn´t come to visit for a week.

Someone else did though and Chris wasn´t pleased to find Ada Wong lounging in a chair one evening, the grappling hook by her side as she toyed with a glass of amber liquid. "New information on Neo-Umbrella. They are not done just yet. Better keep your team ready." As valuable as her information was, Chris sulked that evening about the spy just coming as she pleased.

"I blame Jill for the bad influence." At least Wesker knew how to make him smile. The man made it up to him that night over and over again, forcing Chris to take the next day off after all. He might be a strong man with incredible stamina and endurance, but being unable to sit wouldn´t bode well for a day at the office. Wesker could hear Jill laughing through the phone.

The third week was the strangest one yet. Or perhaps awkward. For one, Jake accepted the dinner invitation from Wesker, though the blond didn´t doubt his roommate complained about that. Their first meeting could have gone better, granted, the revelation that it was his and Jake´s blood combined that kept the virus in check, along with the sniper´s own determination still making him upset and Wesker understood his reasoning. Even if it changed nothing. 

By now he was at least aware of his son´s relationship with the sniper and found them oddly suiting each other. A bit like him and Chris, but without the years of rampaging storm of emotions getting in the way. Or at least not as drastic ones. Now he was busy in the kitchen of his apartment, sleeves rolled up as he checked on the salmon while Chris set the table. 

"I still think you should wear an apron to make sure your clothes don´t get dirty."

"I find it easier to avoid such things since I am faster than a droplet of oil or two." He heard Chris huff, a smile on his face. Oh, he knew it wasn´t about that. 

"How about I get you an apron and teach you how to cook? Now there´s an idea. I also think that an apron would suit you far more than me." Especially if he would wear nothing else underneath. Not allowing himself to be distracted by fantasies, Wesker continued to work on the dessert instead, aware that Chris was now staring, watching his hands work on the heavy cream, creating flowers in the tall glasses.

"Is there anything you cannot do?"

"Saying _no_ to you has become rather impossible, but I am getting better. I also fail at not being a sentimental fool." Which he didn´t mind at all.

When Chris found the bundle of old mistletoe hanging in the hallway of his apartment, he was confused for the longest time. It couldn´t have been there for long, but it was all dry and brittle. Of course, mistletoe was mistletoe and he made sure to pull Wesker into a kiss right beneath, pointing out the old greenery. And the man´s smile said it all, Chris´ eyes wide as he realized what it was.

_"You still have it? After all those years?"_

_"Of course. It was a treasured memento that enabled our first kiss. Why would I not keep it?"_

Instead of a reply he received another kiss and Chris refused to move the mistletoe later, using it as an excuse to kiss Wesker in his hallway each time. Even though he didn´t need one.

"Almost time." Chris checked his phone, walking up behind Wesker to wrap his arms around the man´s waist, watching him add the finishing touches to the meal. Dinner with Jake and Piers would be awkward, no doubt about that, but he was strangely looking forward to it. He was still thankful that his lover managed to save Piers and his son brought him back. Now if only he would allow Chris to make the announcement and reveal his presence while guaranteeing that he was on their size. After all Wesker did, it didn´t feel right that he was hiding. And he wasn´t the only one who felt this way. 

Everyone else did. Even Piers admitted it a few days ago after training, but the stubborn man refused to listen. The time was not right. People held grudges. His life was fine just like this as long as he had the people he cared about in it. But after a while it sounded like excuses. They could just go ahead and reveal his presence... but no one wanted to betray his trust. 

Wesker still had nightmares after all. And the first time Chris watched the man thrash around in his sleep he was terrified of what he was seeing. Waking him up, seeing the startled tears in the powerful man´s eyes was the final sign that he was as human as he possibly could be, holding onto Chris that night, refusing to let go in fear that he would lose him again. The nightmares lessened in frequency since they began sleeping together every night.

The evening with Jake and Piers was every bit as awkward as they all expected. It was Chris who tried to carry the conversation for the most part, right up until Piers wanted to know where they ordered the food from. Shocked to hear that Wesker was the one to make it he remarked how the talent ran in the family and Jake grunted. The blond was pleased to hear that his son cooked as well. After that little revelation, the evening went much better. Although the two refrained from showing too much affection towards each other, Wesker saw the soft touches, the way Jake smiled sometimes at the sniper, how close they sat afterwards.

Overall, things were going perfectly. To the point where he began considering revealing himself, at least to the B.S.A.A. as such. Working freely would be easier after all. A couple weeks after the dinner with Jake and Piers he was once more sitting in Chris´ office, watching the man finish up a report after hours. Their usual routine was like this, with Wesker meeting him outside afterwards, avoiding the cameras. And though Chris didn´t like it, he understood.

"I´ve been thinking, Christopher."

"Hm... what about?"

"About my presence. Perhaps it´s time-"

"Where is he!? Where did you take Piers!?" The angry voice interrupted him and he recognized it immediately. Chris stood up, eyes on the door before he stormed out.

 _"Jake! What the fuck are you doing!?"_ Chris´ voice echoed while Wesker stood in the shadow, watching his son attack a security guard for some reason and narrowed his eyes. There was no way Jake would do that for no reason at all.

"They took Piers!! And this asshole has been leaving WESKER messages all over my locker for months!" Messages? Unaware of this, Wesker himself stepped out for a moment, vanishing as he rushed down to the locker room. The door was torn off the hinges, tossed into a corner. It was an easy feat to pry it into the former state and seeing his name in capital letters scratched into the lacquer made alarm bells go off in his head.

He returned quickly, just in time to see two of Chris´ men haul the security guard off who was still yelling about Carla. He could hear Jake tell Jill what happened, what he saw on the security tape. Piers Nivans has been kidnapped not long ago and Jake was losing it. The raw power he inherited was showing at the most inopportune moment.

Ada Wong made her presence known, explaining what the issue was and hearing that Neo-Umbrella was behind this pissed Wesker off. He left the two for the time being and went to the interrogation room, easily slipping in as Chris entered the room. He glanced once at the blond man and knew better. Quickly he dismissed the two men, sending them to inspect the building and have the rest of Alpha on alert while Wesker stepped forward and stared at the guard and his broken nose.

"I took such great pleasure shooting Carla. She was a fool who thought she can hurt my son and my lover without any consequences to herself. And you... truly a foolish man as well to follow someone without an ounce of success. Was it worth it?" He watched the man tremble, unable to speak a word.

_"Y-you´re-"_

"Alive, yes, very much so. Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for you. Unless Christopher here wishes to get the information out of you. After all, you made the mistake of taking a member of his team and a good friend away." Wesker´s smile promised nothing good and he stepped back as Chris took over. And watching him work was beautiful.

They returned to the office quickly, right after Wesker snapped the man´s neck as he was no longer of any use to them. With Jill pulling up the map he kept an eye on Jake, watching his reaction, judging what was going on in his mind.

"I´m taking him back." At this rate, he would get himself killed. And Wesker would not allow that. Following the young man outside he ignored the fact that he was in full view of anyone who would walk by and grabbed his arm.

"You need to calm down and be rational."

"I don´t give a fuck about that!" He saw the punch coming, dodging out of the way as the fist embedded itself in the wall instead. Jake was operating on anger and Wesker knew this too well. And had to stop it. Strong arms gripped around the man, forcing his arms down, but instead he was thrown off which in itself was impressive, but this wasn´t the time to appreciate his son´s fighting prowess. "You´re not going to stop me."

"I am. At this rate you´re going to get yourself killed." Voice still calm, Wesker stepped close, aware that Chris and Jill were now staring, neither able to do a thing. At least Ada seemed to be enjoying the show.

"Here´s a newsflash: I don´t give a fuck! They have Piers and I´m taking him back!" The boy was in love. Wesker didn´t need to be the genius he was to see this, but the way the blue eyes glowed worried him. The next punch hit and Wesker felt it, but didn´t move from the spot.

"You´re getting better, but not good enough."

"Fuck you, old man!" Wesker heard Jill laugh and felt insulted. He was not that old and even if, he didn´t look his age. He kept watching his son move, anticipating his move, but when the strange red glow flashed again he was caught off guard.

"You need to calm down right now before things escalate, Jake." But it was too late and he knew it. Jake was not going to calm down easily, the anger seeking a way out and Wesker did what any good father would do in this case. Trying to restrain him once more he was aware of the growing power inside the man and sent a look towards Chris, already able to hear heavy boots rushing towards them. And the ones wearing them probably armed.

"I´ve had enough! Piers is waiting for me!" His back met the wall with enough force to knock a normal human man out, but not Wesker. Yet his grip loosened and a moment later his shades were knocked off by another hard punch before Jake jumped over the railing and into the lobby. This kind of jump was not a normal feat either.

And of course, Wesker followed, ignoring the fact that more people stormed into the hallway. Knocking Jake to the ground he was ready for the next blow. Almost evenly matched, but he refused to use his full strength. This was his son, distraught over his boyfriend being gone and all Wesker wanted was to calm him down. So he allowed him to release the anger the best way he knew.

Briefly he became aware that more people were staring and guns were pointed at them. Chris called out his name for a moment, but he had no time to reply. Jill was trying to control the gathered onlookers, yelling out orders, forcing their guns down just as Jake knocked him to the ground.

"Stop getting in the way dammit!" he had power in his fists and Wesker felt the bones in his face break and mend quickly, his accelerated healing working perfectly. It wasn´t without pain though, especially when another punch forced his head through the hard marble floor. They would leave a mess of the lobby for sure.

Again, Chris called his name and he looked at the man as he forbade his men to shoot, effectively showing that he knew of Wesker´s presence. So much for taking things slowly when it came to revealing his presence. He had other, more important things to worry about now. Jake´s punches kept coming and Wesker vanished before another one could hit him, a pillar bearing the brunt of the force this time as he began to move quicker. Yet to his surprise, Jake matched the speed equally.

Now this was not a part of what he knew. The antibodies Jake inherited have proven useful, natural talents showing clearly within the young man from a young age, but with the antibodies, he should be immune to the side-effects of any viruses. Instead he kept moving faster and his next punch was actually hard enough to bruise, breaking a rib that mended quickly before it could pierce his lung. So this was what it felt like to go up against someone of his own power.

No time to appreciate the fight, Wesker decided that too much time had passed. When the next punch came, he stopped it, gripping the other´s fist in his hand and stared into Jake´s eyes with his own. If any of the onlookers had doubts, seeing the two men face to face probably took them away. "We´re getting him back, Jake, but you need to calm down. Otherwise you could end up hurting him."

The words finally had an effect and he watched Jake fall to his knees, face buried in his hands. Briefly, Wesker looked up at Chris, nodding softly before kneeling down to embrace his son, offering what comfort he could, even if it wasn´t much. He let the young man cry as long as he needed to, ignoring the whispers coming from the peanut gallery. At least no one shot at them, which was a good sign as far as he was concerned.

_"Captain... why is Albert Wesker hugging Jake?"_

No explanation was given. There was no time to waste. Bigger matters were at hand and once Jake stopped crying, once more back to his old, charming self, they both stood up. The destruction in the lobby was obvious and neither of them cared, walking back upstairs as calmly as possible. Wesker was aware of the guns trained on his chest, a sniper rifle aiming for his forehead and sighed. 

"Truly, if a rocket was not enough, a bullet will only be a waste. Now, how about we deal with the important things first?" There was a moment of hesitation and then the guns were lowered. Chris handed him his shades back, but Wesker didn´t bother putting them back on just yet. A moment of understanding passed between them before he turned to his men."

"Alright. Everyone, meeting in two minutes in room C! Get fucking going!"


	15. A man in love...

They were all on edge during the meeting. Jake because his boyfriend was gone, which was understandable. Chris because one of his men was gone, another was losing control and his lover has now revealed that he was alive. The other three members of team Alpha because of Wesker and Jake and the missing Piers. Only Jill seemed to be in control of her emotions completely while Ada watched on as the only person who had no personal stake in all of this. The glares directed at his person didn´t bother Wesker too much. It was only when useless questions that contributed nothing to the problem at hand began to arise.

When Jake began to argue with one of the others, Wesker watched, not liking the way Jake was being accused of who his father was. He didn´t choose Wesker to be his father and a while ago he hadn´t even know who he was or what he had done. Or what he recently did to help save the world. The loudmouth on team Alpha was just-

"Would you shut up already! Wesker is a good guy, Jake is his son, he´s dating Piers and Piers has been fucking kidnapped for some fucked up reason and we are going to get him back!" Chris´ outburst came as a surprise and once more, Wesker was left impressed. It was so easy that this man was a hero who kept saving the world when he was naked and moaning beneath him. Or on top of him. But now wasn´t the time to be distracted.

"They aren´t going to kill him, I know that much. They want the vaccine that enabled Wesker to be as he is now and Piers to be his normal self. Which is to say, they could still hurt him plenty of they tried to. It´s only been two hours, so we are actually making good time with all this. Wesker?" Ada still sounded amused, watching something on her phone and Wesker knew it was his fight with Jake.

Walking forward he watched the loud one cringe and shift in his seat, but the other two seemed rather composed. Good. That meant they would be focused. "Indeed, as Ada said, they are after the vaccine made from my and Jake´s blood. But the dose given to Piers was one of a kind. Replicas have been made, but the vaccine merged with the C-virus inside him and created a new strain of virus that is actually useful. Which is what they are after. In hopes to obtain power, they want to harness this new mutated form and use it."

"How do I get in?" That was all Jake seemed to care about now. Retrieving Piers. And Wesker hoped that Ada was right and the ones who took the sniper hadn´t had the time yet to do anything to him. He wouldn´t put it past Jake to lose control completely and not even he knew what to expect.

"Several options are presented. The silent kind, vents and assassinations, might be more suitable, but as you are right now, going head on might be better. They will send out enough men to weaken the inner defence. In order to get rid of them, I will need Alpha team to treat this as any other mission. Kill anyone left." He looked at each of them with a hard stare, eyes no longer concealed by the shades. No one dared to look away.

Chris took control once more as Jill arranged for weapons, though Wesker knew he didn´t need any. Though he did have the knife from Chris. When they headed for the armoury he followed, inspecting the weaponry provided, far more interested in Jake´s personal revolver that didn´t match the standard issue gear. Of course, his son refused to wear the same clothes as others. Though it was somewhat foolish, at least the young man had style, Wesker noted with an odd sense of pride.

As the others headed outside to the waiting cars he lingered beside Chris for a moment, not looking at the man as he put the shades finally back on. "Not the way I would have chosen, but it is too late. Think they will accept it?"

Chris finished loading his gun and looked at the man, then pulled him into a kiss. "I will make them accept it, don´t worry. Let´s go. No time to waste." And Wesker followed. Once outside, the loud one, Simon, from what he recalled, seemed to be still vary of his presence, eyeing him without even trying to be subtle about it.

"So he´s really coming along, huh?" Such a mundane question.

"I assure you I have no intention of going crazy. It would upset Christopher and I cannot have that." Wesker smirked as he calmly slid into the passenger seat with Jake behind the wheel. 

"What?"

"Get a fucking move on before I throw you into the fucking car, Simon!" Jake was still pissed off, but in control. And Wesker planned to keep both eyes on him to ensure he stayed that way. With Chris taking the other car he saw Ada wave, apparently pleased with how things were going before they both drove off. Reckless driving seemed to be a thing in the B.S.A.A. for some reason.

"A man in love is a scary thing."

_"Shut up already."_ Speaking at the same time as Jake, Wesker saw a flash of a smile on his son´s face as they headed outside the city. Simon had no idea how right he was...

\---

The building was not impressive in any way, the black van outside empty and Wesker made sure to flip it over on the side before walking to the entrance. With the others keeping an eye on the premises, it would truly only take him to deal with this place. But he knew that Jake would not be held back and Chris was the Captain after all.

Seeing Jake move with such efficiency was certainly impressive. Wesker was putting his own skills to use as well. Before a standing guard could even realize what was happening he was lying dead, neck snapped as Wesker stepped over his body. They moved quickly, quicker than Chris could watch and he knew that his lover would have questions later, but for now he just took charge. Or tried to, since Wesker always made sure to be a step ahead, acting as a menacing, living shield.

When they reached another hallway that split in two paths, Wesker knew what had to be done. And he also knew who would do it. "Christopher, there are two doors. You stay here."

"What? No I´m-"

"Staying here. You´d only get in the way." Both father and son looked at him and after a moment he nodded. Those eyes, icy blue and intense, were scary when angry.

\---

A dead end littered with bodies, but no hint of Piers anywhere. Wesker´s displeasure showed in his face as he rushed back, meeting up with the anxious Chris. Briefly he pulled the man close, kissing him softly, but there was no time for anything else. "Nothing that way. Let´s catch up with Jake since that´s the right way to go."

Seeing the destruction left in his son´s wake only showed how desperate he was to find the sniper. Chris looked surprised, but Wesker understood. He would have done the same, if not even worse, if Chris would have been the one taken from him. By the end no wall would remain standing and he would only need his bare hands to accomplish that. As they entered what appeared to be a laboratory, Wesker saw Jake immediately, searching for something among the panels before destroying what was deemed unusable.

"Jake!" The man looked up, informing them that apparently the sniper was still alive and held captive somewhere. The relief in Chris´ face was obvious and Wesker moved on to search the room, the layout familiar. Truly, no originality, even the name stolen from the original Umbrella. And of course, following the same path, they met their downfall.

"The layout follows the basic Umbrella laboratories. If I recall correctly..." Walking to one of the walls he inspected the panel, glad to find it intact and soon had it lit up, demanding an access card. No passwords at all. Such a lack of foresight, but that only helped them now. Retrieving the card from one of the still human bodies left he swiped it with ease and a door slowly opened, showing the path down a long hallway. Before he could take even one step, Jake was rushing down past him.

"Jake-wait!" The automatic machine gun could not seem to take proper aim, failing to match the man´s speed and the side-effects of something showed once more. No time to waste, Wesker followed, aware that Chris was right behind him now. Taking the machine gun out was easy enough

_"Piers!!"_ The shout was clue enough. The sniper was found and the tone indicated that he was alive at least. Wesker followed quickly, heavy footsteps following somewhere behind. More of those vermin, but he would deal with them soon. Just as they entered the room, a crazed voice finished blaming Jake for the fall of Neo-Umbrella and before he could move, a gunshot was fired.

_"No!!"_ This time it was two people yelling. Piers´ voice mixed with his own as he watched the blood spread. His son´s blood. A clear shot through the chest, no doubt piercing the heart as the bullet went out the other side and coated the glass panel in red. Before Wesker knew what was happening he had his own arm through the shooter´s chest, clutching the still beating heart before squeezing until it was crushed into a pulp. But he was not done. The rage he felt surged through, clouding his mind as he grabbed the still conscious man and tore him in half, spine snapping halfway through one half and into the other.

But the rush didn´t end there. Focusing on his son he saw him still trying to break the glass instead of lying limp. He felt shame that for a moment his rage took precedence and revenge took over worry, but seeing Jake now... he seemed... what was happening? Wesker was used to being able to recover from bullets with ease, but his son should not have that ability. Searching for a panel to take the wall down he didn´t get the chance to even search the now dead man on the ground, or either half of him, instead watched in shock as sparks filled the small chamber.

The limb mutated once more, shooting off the electricity that the sniper gathered and shattered the wall where bullets could not. The blond could only stare, shocked and awed as he charged again, this time aiming for the long hallway that was bursting with armed men, vermin that was determined to stand in their way. When the blinding spark came again, he had to close his eyes and once they opened again, there was nothing. Disintegrated completely.

Piers looked exhausted, but when he cried out in pain and the mutated limb began to shrink in size and reshape into a human form once more, Wesker knew exactly what happened. Seeing Jake wrap his arms around the man to comfort him he gave the two a moment before stepping close. So many questions and he wanted answers, the scientist inside him curious and amazed. And judging by Chris´ expression, he wasn´t the only one. Kneeling down he pushed Jake´s shirt up, finding no bullet wound whatsoever. "A clean shot, straight through the heart, the bullet exiting on the other side." There was a faint mark, a pale scar of sorts that showed that at one time there might have been some damage. But his son was smiling instead of lying dead on the floor, holding his boyfriend. "Remarkable."

"Can you fucking knock it off? I need to get Piers home. Or to a hospital or something." Wesker chuckled and stepped back, watching as he helped Piers stand. He himself moved to Chris´ side and touched his shoulder to snap the man out of the shock. It was over. They could go back now.

"No hospitals... those places suck. Besides, I´m fine. You´re the one who was shot." The shock of seeing Jake shot triggered a reaction from Piers. If there could be any greater evidence of a man in love, Wesker could not imagine what it could be.

"Yea, no idea what happened there... still hurts like a bitch." And yet he was walking and smiling just fine, as though it was a mere scratch. Wesker shook his head and lead the way, getting rid of anyone who still tried to move, though only two were foolish enough to try. There has been enough excitement for one night. 

Finally leaving the building he saw the destruction left outside, pleased to see that the Alpha team did such good work. Everyone looked exhausted, but satisfied and he knew that look well. How many times did his S.T.A.R.S. team have the same one on their faces when they finally finished a case? But there were still a few things left to be done.

The medical inspection could be taken care of quickly with his own team since he did not exactly trust a normal doctor with the unique physiology both men had. 

"Good job everyone. Head back to the HQ. Those two will be treated and afterwards... we can do some explaining or-" Chris was once more in charge, giving orders before one of the men interrupted.

"Captain, can we do that tomorrow? Or the day after? I think we all had enough for tonight and just need some rest. Those two especially. And you two also look like you need some time off." Oddly insightful of him when considering that Simon was the one to be the most vary of Wesker just a while ago.

"That´s fine with me. Alright. Head back to the HQ and then go home. The day after tomorrow I expect you all in my office-"

"Christopher, your office is not big enough for everyone." And Wesker had enough of it being flooded by people when he wanted to have some alone quality time with Chris.

"Fine. I´ll think of something. Just be there at noon." This time, Wesker drove back since Jake was too busy fussing over Piers. A man in love truly was a dangerous thing.

\---

"So, what do you think happened there?" Watching the two leave in one of the B.S.A.A. jeeps, Chris leaned his head on Wesker´s shoulder, the older man´s arm wrapped around his waist. Both were perfectly healthy, merely in need of some proper rest. Chris insisted on seeing his whole team off for the moment as well before he would go anywhere himself.

"The six months in China have done something to Jake´s system as they experimented on him... although he is immune to the virus, at the same time he is more like me. I would need more time to understand it. As for Piers... the anger over seeing Jake shot triggered an automatic response to protect or avenge him, hence why his arm mutated. But he wanted it to. He needed a weapon and seeing as his arm used to be one, wanted it again. But those are all assumptions. And I doubt they feel like finding out the truth just yet." Wesker pressed a kiss to the younger man´s temple and smiled. "For now, all that matters is that they are alive and well."

"Captain?" Chris turned around, seeing the rest of Alpha team standing there, once more dressed in civilian clothes and apparently ready to leave. "Well, uh, have a good night, Captain. You too, Wesker." The blond man nodded, watching the three leave in silence. The secret was out. And two days from now there would be a lot of explaining to be done. Right now though, all he wanted was to take Chris home and just spend some quality time with him.

"Not the way I would have chosen, but nothing can be done about it now I guess. At least they stopped pointing their guns at me." Chris didn´t share his amusement, recalling how he himself pointed his revolver at the man when he first appeared before him years after his supposed death.

"We have two days to come up with an explanation..." Chris leaned into him again, tired, and Wesker stroked his hair. "Or I will just let Jill explain everything since she has so much practice..."

"I think that´s a perfect idea. For tonight, let´s just go to my place. You should also call in tomorrow." Chris needed the rest. When the man didn´t argue, Wesker pressed another kiss to his temple. He couldn´t be more proud of the man his Star became. Not just a leader whom people followed because they had to. They trusted him and looked up to him, sought him out and looked up to the man and Wesker knew exactly why.

The same reason he fell for the man so long ago.


	16. A new beginning

One day of rest didn´t seem like enough and Wesker wished he could convince Chris to take another one off. Or a week. One of these days he would drag him away from the B.S.A.A. and on a vacation someplace nice. Not today though. Already he felt annoyed that they had to meet with everyone to explain what happened. With Wesker´s existence revealed, rumours were already flying around and it was better to smother them before they could spread outside. Not that he didn´t doubt that others outside of the organization would find out and more hell would start, but for now, they could contain it.

Chris was worried and it showed as Wesker studied his face, watching the man´s eyes gaze into the mug of coffee that he should have drank an hour ago. His office was silent at least and no one bothered to come inside to talk to him. When they walked in that morning, Wesker walked right beside him, tall and proud and every bit as intimidating as he could possibly be. Oh, the stares they received were nearly glaring and the moment he looked in one direction, people there were incredibly busy.

It was actually amusing for a while.

"For so long Jill kept telling me that everything will be fine, I am starting to think she was only half-right. I have not been shot or attacked, but I worry that the trust people have in you is going to be affected by associating with someone like me. No... not someone. By associating with Albert Wesker himself." Musing out loud, the blond stood up, walking around the desk to brush his gloved fingers through Chris´ hair, smoothing it into place a moment later. "Maybe it would be better if I-"

"Don´t you dare finish that sentence." He watched Chris stand up and grab the front of his shirt, pushing him against a bookcase hard enough to rattle it. There was anger in his eyes and determination that Wesker was now familiar with. "You´re not going anywhere! You saved this world so many times now and without your intel the B.S.A.A. wouldn´t be able to do shit and now they all are starting to realize where it came from. So I´m not letting you get away from me, Wesker."

"... I understand." The gaze softened as Chris reached out to take the shades off the man´s nose, pulling him into a kiss instead. Wesker could not imagine a life without the man in it. It worried him to consider just how much power Chris Redfield had over him without being aware. Returning the kiss, arms wrapping around his waist, he just held the younger man to his frame, able to feel his powerful heartbeat.

One kiss was _never_ enough.

Within seconds he had the man pinned to the desk, lips on his neck, sucking on the skin to create another red mark while his hands were pushing up his shirt. He loved the way the clothes stretched over his muscles, showing off the man´s body and he loved to see all that power within his arms as the man moaned out his name in such a breathless. Just like right now. One hand teased over a perky nipple and neither heard the knock on the door.

"Oh for fuck´s sake!" Trust Jake to have the worst timing of all. Well, too bad, since Wesker didn´t want to stop anytime soon. "Your door has a fucking lock! Use it!" Maybe next time, even though a lock never stopped Jill from coming as she pleased. Which reminded him that he should get the key to his apartment back from her eventually. But right now he was busy.

"You two have ten minutes before the meeting!" Speak of the devil...

\---

Ten minutes later, in the piano lounge, Wesker moved to stand beside Chris, aware of the stares directed at him. People should use sunglasses more often since it allowed them to watch others without them knowing. Strange that no one seemed to have considered this, or maybe they didn´t care. Either way, he found himself on the receiving end of curious and worried glances and several intense glared, but also a few kind ones, which he found surprising. Jake and Piers were also present as Jill took over, explaining rather quickly, all the while showing evidence of all Wesker had done.

Seeing it on a screen like this was actually strange. He still felt like he hadn´t done enough, but the evidence of files and intel he provided, the vaccines he and his team had worked on, the missions he took in place of others that Jill deemed too dangerous... it was all there. A few years and it seemed to accumulate quite a bit. But it wasn´t over yet. With the last slide gone, a recounting of what happened when Piers Nivans has been kidnapped and retrieved two days ago, she turned to the gathered people in the room.

"So he´s a member of the B.S.A.A. now?" What an odd thing to ask.

"No, I´m-"

"Actually he is, though I haven´t told him yet. I had everything issued months ago, but usually he´s hanging out with Chris and I never got the chance to give him the papers or his badge and card." A badge? Card? He never needed either of those or anything else to come and go as he pleased and he never signed up for this. Still, it was a rather nice surprise, but he couldn´t let that show in his face.

"I do not recall agreeing to this."

"I didn´t ask." And it wasn´t surprising at all. "Next question?"

Of course, the question about Jake being his son appeared again and Jake looked about as pleased about it as Wesker. But that didn´t change a thing for anyone. When Jill explained how the information got out, the cause of the mess from two days ago, everyone seemed satisfied. Especially with the video that made the rounds recently thanks to Ada.

She made sure to send him a copy as well and it was... impressive. Seeing Jake match his power and speed was remarkable. And others seemed to think so as well considering the rumours of new training practices. Which brought up the new question that made Wesker roll his eyes behind his shades before taking them off. When Jill referred to him he sighed and stepped forward, pointing to the white screen.

"There is no serum to make a super soldier. No secret concoction that will make you a hero. I am thankful to have regained most of my humanity, but will always remain different. Piers Nivans himself suffered the consequences of the C-virus and only his own nature saved his mind from the damage it wrecks on someone weaker than that." He changed the slide to show a little mashup of mutating J´avo and B.O.W. "These are all people who thought they could use the virus and a cocktail of various serums to control the effects. They are all dead now, of course. So no, there is no serum or anything like it."

He saw the looks of relief and disappointment in their faces and looked to Jill and Chris for a moment. They were smiling. Of course they were. Because they planned for this ahead. So Wesker looked around the room before the next question could come.

"Of course, even without serums an such nonsense it is possible to increase your physical abilities. Those interested can come see me during the training hours Jill will select. Your first task will be to take these away from me. If any of you succeed by the end of the month, it will be a great improvement." It should also be entertaining to see who would be brave enough to try.

"But February only began!"

"That leaves you with four weeks worth of trying, does it not?" Plenty of time in his opinion. Putting his shades back on he waited for the next question and hoped it wouldn´t be stupid.

"Can we watch you fight Jake again?" So much for that.

"I want to see him fight Chris!" That would not happen.

"How about Piers and Jake going against Chris and Wesker?" This was actually an interesting idea to ponder later.

"I would pay to watch that!" Wesker could see Jill laughing while Chris looked almost offended, looking to Wesker with a strange look. The blond only smiled.

"Is there any actual, relevant question?"

"Yea. Are you behind the mysterious meds that were sent out to those afflicted by a virus? All came signed with your initials anyway and connected to the B.S.A.A. labs." Looking to the man who spoke he recognized him as one from team Alpha. But he had seen him before, in a photo his excited researcher showed him.

"What is your name?" He knew already.

"Cole Marshall."

"Samantha Marshall, graduated recently with her PhD. In biochemistry and viral sciences, am I correct? She´s an essential member of my team. You can be proud of her." The doctorate itself was merely an addition, a piece of paper, but she didn´t need anything like that. Such a brilliant young lady. Even if she did teach the damn dog to steal his shades. "I think we can call an end to this-"

"Are you dating Chris?" The source of the question was in the back, but he could not identify who would be as bold as to ask something like this. The silence was thick and for a moment he remained silent, looking to Chris before smiling. If he wasn´t going to hide, then he wasn´t going to hide this either.

"It´s always hard to let go of something you wanted for years. But you may want to remember to knock when entering his office." Slowly he walked over to the stunned man, touching his shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. _"They would have found out sooner or later and I would rather it be on my terms for once, my Star."_ Whispering into his ear, Wesker smiled and then he was gone, standing at the other end of the room, effectively startling the ones standing near. He delighted in the cries of shock and surprise.

"If that is all, I will be in the training room waiting for my first victims." And he left, calmly walking outside and down the hallway. If anyone at all would show up, he would consider that a success.

Footsteps soon followed, ones he recognized immediately as he walked into the locker room. The door to Jake´s locker has been replaced and there were no more stickers of scratches anywhere. Being able to move this freely didn´t leave him without some lingering feelings of wanting to hide, but as the footsteps reached him he turned just in time to see Chris´ angry and embarrassed face as he pointed to the mark on his neck.

"You have to stop leaving these!"

"I´m afraid that´s not an option. Unless I make sure they all know you are taken, by myself especially, they might try to hit on you, Christopher, and I simply cannot have that happen. And it is fun to leave them all over your body, especially in places you cannot see." He delighted in the shock he saw there and after a second reached down to give the man´s delectable rear a squeeze. "Like right here..."

"You´re... impossible!"

"Of course. You have known me for so long Christopher. Now, did you come to watch me play with your soldiers? I promise not to break them, but bruises are to be expected." Heading to the training room he was stopped by a strong hand on his arm pulling him back.

"I actually did, but more than that, you can´t wear outside clothes there." There was a devious smile on the man´s face.

"You are not suggesting-"

"No, I´m ordering it. You need to change into proper workout gear like the rest. As a member of the B.S.A.A., you need to look the part." Wesker frowned.

"Jake doesn´t wear the standard issue gear, so I don´t see-"

"Jake needs freedom of movement for close quarters combat since that´s his specialty. You on the other hand, can move properly in anything. And besides, he wears proper training gear." Chris was smirking and although the expression was beautiful on his face, Wesker was not happy.

"Well, have it your way, but I have no-"

"Jill took care of that."

"..." Chris tugged him towards one of the lockers, right beside his own. The letters A. Wesker neatly standing out against the dark lacquer and it was just like back at S.T.A.R.S., since even then his locker was right beside his best man´s. Chris opened the door with more flourish than was necessary and when Wesker looked inside he chuckled.

The first thing that caught his eyes were the photos there. The unmistakable one of his S.T.A.R.S team brought back memories, but right beside it was the photo of him and Jake´s mother. And of course, it wouldn´t be complete without a photo and Chris and him that Jill took a while ago, Chris smiling his usual boyish smile while Wesker´s lips had the tiniest hint of one, arm around the other man´s shoulders.

"I guess it could be worse." Chris kissed his cheek softly and pulled out the training gear all the others wore. Of course he knew the man´s size in everything.

"I made sure Jill got everything needed. Even your brand of hair wax." Chris grinned and Wesker could not deny the man anything. With an another sigh he took his jacket off, then his shirt, neatly hanging them up before putting on the white tank top. He really wasn´t a fan of bright colours like this. He would be changing this to a black one the next time, whether Chris liked it or not. Aware that he was being watched he took off his boots and pants next and changed into the rest of the gear. When he stood up, he heard the shutter sound of Chris´ phone go off.

"Payback for the photos you took of me..."

"I do recall you were _nude_ and-" A hand clasped over his mouth as some of the men from the gathering entered the locker room.

"Your first victims are here." There was a moment of hesitation in Chris´ eyes before he leaned in and kissed him, pulling away quickly. "I have some paperwork to finish up, so drop by my office later, okay?" Wesker nodded, watching the man leave and sighed, taking his shades and slid them back on as he entered the training room.

It was all so familiar, yet new at the same time. This was no longer S.T.A.R.S. and he was no longer being used by Umbrella or anyone else. His life was his own at last and he had everything he could have ever hoped for. When the door opened and the men began to nervously walk inside he was impressed at how many actually came. The B.S.A.A. was not a bad place at all.

"Your first challenge will be to take these off my person. How you do it, I don´t care. If they break... I have spare, so there´s no need to hold back. Now, who´s willing to go first?"


	17. Captain

_-Six months later-_

"Take ten. I must say I am rather impressed. I expected many more people to give up after the first weeks, but you lot are actually improving." Looking around he saw the men grin, many of them panting, a few rubbing the sore spots after the new training, but everyone looked happy.

His training methods were not what the B.S.A.A. operatives were used to. He didn´t coddle them and only held back to ensure that he wasn´t doing permanent damage. Yet after the first weeks only a few ended up leaving, the majority now determined to fight back. The first challenge to get the shades off of the man was actually won by the loud mouth from Chris´ team, which surprised even Wesker. But that was far from the end. Next came the blows, landing one, knocking him back, being able to surprise him. And they all greedily took it. So far, only two people managed to go beyond the blows though.

One of them was of course Jake, who took up the offer to show them all how to fight. At least this time they didn´t ruin anything, but left a lasting impression, which resulted in Jake himself being followed around and requested to fight with the others. Once the fight with the Ustanak made rounds again, it was unavoidable. 

The other was Chris and though it felt strange to fight against his lover, Wesker gave in, watching the man, knowing his moves, but at the same time he didn´t hold back. When he was knocked back, he could hear the shock from the men around, but the headlock didn´t last long as he tossed Chris onto his back and straddled him next, overpowering the man. The sex later was intense and left both men bruised and highly satisfied.

Jill participated from time to time, but she had her own thing going, thanks to all Wesker taught her. And after Wesker asked her to, she taught Samantha self-defence as well. The reason was simple. Unsolicited attention. And since her big brother was not around to help, someone else had to.

After it became publicly known that the man was not only alive, but also working for the B.S.A.A. and lead a research team, it became common to see people in combat clothes and white coats mingle in the canteen. Wesker usually took his lunches with Chris in the man´s office, but from time to time joined the others, just to see the reactions of those around.

It was three months after his reveal that he walked into the canteen, a few eyes staring at him within seconds, and saw his research team gathered at a table. Along with two men in combat outfits sitting too close to the young girl who looked increasingly more uncomfortable. Yet no one seemed willing to intervene.

"Come on, I bet you´re a wild one. The smart ones always are and I can show you a good time. We both can."

"I mean really, it´s easier if you say yes now." The onlookers saw Wesker move before anyone else and it took only a second before he had both men dangling by their necks as he held them up.

"I have killed men for less than what you two imbeciles are doing here. Now, try to convince me why I should not simply snap your necks right here? After all, you´ve been bothering my top researcher. And finally I know the reason why she´s been so demure lately." He saw Chris walk into the canteen from the corner of his eye, but before the man could intervene another one pulled him aside to explain. And then Chris just stood there and watched.

No reply came from either of the two, their air supply effectively cut off, but Wesker did not let go, watching them struggle. It was only when their lips turned blue that he tossed them into a wall and calmly walked over, his steps echoing in the deadly silent canteen. "Which team do you belong to?"

"Y-you can´t-"

_"Which. Team."_

"D-Delta!" Wesker´s smile promised nothing good as he took his shades off and stared at them. There still seemed to be something about the man looking at someone without them that made their blood run cold and now it was no different.

"No longer. You are herewith removed from team Delta and reduced to scrubs until you can prove to be worthy of working under the B.S.A.A. once more." He stood up again, walking to Samantha and calmly sat down.

"You don´t have the authority-!"

"His words outweigh any authority, all things considered. And besides, I do. Get the fuck out before you are permanently blacklisted." Chris´ voice carried that authoritative tone that made Wesker smirk each time he heard that. Watching the two scramble away. After this incident and finding out about a few more, Jill took it upon herself to lead special classes for the non-combatants. Samantha was delighted when she won a spar against her brother.

Everything was going well. Even if Neo-Umbrella was no longer around or a threat, the B.S.A.A. worked quickly on those who came after. Shortly after his reveal, agents Kennedy and Birkin showed up and were given the same explanation as everyone else, while Ada helped back everything up. Working with the government was not something Wesker was used to, but things were fairly easy to arrange once he ensured no one would meddle in the missions he took privately. Because some were simply too dangerous for mere humans.

Over the months, Chris took to spending more and more time at his place and it wasn´t that long ago that Wesker just asked him to move in. It would be better and easier since they practically lived together anyway. And he loved the idea of having him around all the time. And when Chris agreed, Wesker could not be happier. But it didn´t take long for the news to spread around the HQ and Wesker never imagined he would find himself being teased by others. Something like that was unthinkable in S.T.A.R.S.!

Even more so when he found himself leading his own team. Being called _Captain_ didn´t sit well with him at first, too many memories back, but he gave in when Jake was the one to convince him to do it. Of course, it wouldn´t be Wesker if the team itself wouldn´t be different. An Echo in the night, as they were called, working secretly, undercover, retrieving precious intel that others used later. The B.S.A.A. was becoming more and more prominent in the fight against bio-terrorism.

But for tonight, all fights and work would be left aside as they were attending a housewarming party. After Chris moved out and his apartment was left empty, Piers spoke up about taking it. Apparently tired of the B.S.A.A. housing he wanted something more permanent. Something private with Jake. Helping them move in was rather amusing. And finally they were done, ready to welcome guests to their new home. At least for one night.

"Hm, you look handsome like this." Chris was toying with Wesker´s tie, tugging on it gently just to pull the man down into a kiss. The golden leaf design matched his hair perfectly and the blue of his shirt was the perfect shade to match his eyes. 

"I don´t see how this is that different from what I usually wear, but as long as you like it I´m content." Wesker himself thought that Chris looked ravishing. The deep wine-coloured shirt looked amazing on him, clinging to his body in all the right places. Taking it off later would be a pleasure, although he might just have to rip if off. Pulling the younger man into a proper kiss, Wesker smiled softly and looked up. The mistletoe now permanently hung in their apartment from the ceiling.

Their apartment. Their home. He loved to think of it like this. And coming home to find Chris waiting was true bliss. Although he nearly lost it when he came back and found him wearing an apron while in the kitchen, working hard on dinner and he forbade Wesker from even getting close. The pasta was a bit overcooked, but he loved it all the same. He also didn´t allow Chris to take the apron off and after that night it needed a run in the washing machine...

"Let´s go before we´re late or I get distracted." Chris pulled away after a moment and smiled, grabbing the car keys. When Wesker retrieved his old Porsche and told him that he had no intention to drive since he could move faster without, Chris made sure that the car got plenty of use out of it. Driving to his old apartment felt somewhat strange, but he didn´t mind at all. 

It looked different. New furniture, different arrangement, a different smell, things were definitely changing and for once it was for the better. Wesker nodded at the Alpha team as they walked past, seeing Sherry already talking to Claire in excitement. The woman needed perhaps more convincing than anyone else that he was on their side now and that he truly loved Chris. And he secretly appreciated that she was so wary of him.

"Feels weird to be coming here as a guest." Chuckling he nodded, seeing the piano in a new, better place. The sound had to be lovely.

"Or as an intruder." How many times had he snuck in at night to watch Chris sleep? It seemed like so long ago now...

"Way to be creepy, old man." Jake´s smile still showed as he disapproved of this. Their relationship got better. Wesker told him everything about his mother, talking about her little habits and the time they spent together and overall, their relationship was simply better. Not exactly like a father and son, but close.

"I bet you made all of this again, right?" Claire moved to stand beside her brother for a moment, champagne glass in hand as she looked to Jake who set another platter with appetizers on the table.

"It´s a nice way to relax." Wesker could agree on that. There was something about taking raw ingredients and creating something new out of them that they both enjoyed.

"I wish Wesker could cook this well." Rolling his eyes, Wesker looked at Chris, aware that the man was merely teasing him. Well, two could play that game...

"I still cook more than you do, Christopher. Although you seem to be good at stuffing your mouth." Wrapping his arm around Chris´ waist he pulled him closer, waiting to see when he would catch on.

"I could same the same about you." He really was cute when oblivious like this.

"About stuffing your mouth?" The way Chris´ cheeks darkened would never cease to amuse him and when Jake stepped away after a comment he knew he won. They did have a tendency to forget locking office doors since usually they merely wanted to enjoy each other´s company. Yet more often than now, this became more than just sitting together and talking.

Getting used to walking around freely took time getting used to, but he seemed to have the hang of it now. Sometimes it helped that others followed him. Samantha especially did not care for what others said, often following him around while rambling about a new project and the dog always followed. Jill was always a welcome visitor as well, even if she returned his apartment key with some reluctance before claiming she could always pick the lock. She only did so once, rewarded by a sight of two naked men and a kitchen table she avoided for a month afterwards.

Things were going well for everyone. Almost too well. Sometimes he expected a nightmare from the past to come alive and come back to haunt him, but each time he was reassured that even if that would happen, there were people around to take care of it. Life was good. Pulling Chris close once more they watched people mingle and talk and the past seemed so far away that moment...

"You´re thinking again." Chris´ voice snapped him out of his thoughts and he smiled at the man, pressing a soft kiss to his temple.

"I am, but don´t worry." He knew that the other would, just like he knew that later he would ask about it, but for now they could just enjoy the party and relax.

_-Later that evening-_

"That was fun! Jake´s a really good cook. Maybe I should take lessons so I can surprise you more." Chris smiled as he took his jacket off and tossed it over the back of a chair, Wesker´s eyes on him as the man went to the kitchen to grab the carton of orange juice and drank straight from it.

"You can always surprise me just by wearing an apron when I come home." Wesker picked up the jacket, grabbing a coat hanger so it wouldn´t get wrinkled and hung it up in the closet.

"But what´s the point if I won´t cook?" Putting the carton back into the fridge he smiled at Wesker.

"I could just eat you, I guess." Loosening his tie as he stared at the other man, Wesker kept smiling as he walked closer. They had both tomorrow off...

"Very funny. They made the place look nice, right? I will kinda miss it, but I like this right here better." Slowly the younger man walked over to him, hands rising to play with the tie before undoing the knot and using either end to pull him into a kiss. "Living together has definitely advantages."

"Hm, like what, my Star?" He always enjoyed watching Chris shudder when he called him that, but the nickname fit him so perfectly. He was the bright shining star of the B.S.A.A., guiding others and leading them when everything looked dark and bleak. He was the star of Wesker´s team back at S.T.A.R.S. and the reason why he earned the nickname in the first place. But most importantly, he was the bright, warm star that kept the man going through madness and despair, bringing light into his life and kept him going no matter what.

"Like you, Captain Wesker." This time it was Wesker´s turn to shiver and he pulled the other closer, hands toying with the top button of his shirt. He could see the delight Chris took in calling him that, drawing the reaction from him, and by now he was more than ready.

"You know, _Chris_ , all evening now I could only think of one thing..." Warm eyes widened as he used the man´s name like this. Only so rarely he did it and Chris knew what was coming. Their night was far from over.

"And what is that?" His answer came in the form of buttons clattering all over the floor, hiding in the thick carpet as Wesker tore open the tempting shirt, revealing that godly body to his eyes only. 

"This... and more..."

**Author's Note:**

> Please, leave me any comments you have. Once again, I will try to keep things canon and in-character. But I can already tell you that nobody will die. I like these guys and I loved RE6. After all Wesker has been through, he deserves happiness. This is somewhat of an accompanying piece to _Confidential Hope_ and the one-shot _Mistletoe Memento_. I hope you enjoyed it!


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